


The Book of Fluff

by bloodebear



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Main Video Game Series), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: A big goofy family, All of the pokemon league champions are here, Attempt at Humor, DarkSteelShipping, Domestic Fluff, Established Relationship, F/M, Family Fluff, Fluff, I Tried, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, Will add more chapters later, oh and all of them are a big family, poor steven
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-30
Updated: 2021-01-30
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:15:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 24
Words: 43,307
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24679099
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bloodebear/pseuds/bloodebear
Summary: The book / fic where we explore the daily lives of our lovely champions!Steven and Cynthia have been dating for six months now and they are more than happy! No one knows about them being an item, which makes their dating lives private to the public eye. They’re very very careful, and subtle about their relationship, not even their relatives know about them! But then, someone leaked some informations about Steven’s dating life, and all hell breaks loose.
Relationships: Shirona | Cynthia/Tsuwabuki Daigo | Steven Stone
Comments: 4
Kudos: 54





	1. The Dilemma

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time posting a fanfic so, my apologies if it’s not your cup of tea. But, i really do hope you’ll enjoy this fic that i did yesterday [i finished writing 3 chapters in one sitting, help.]
> 
> Also, i will probably add some other characters, like: The Elite four members, gym leaders, & etc. 
> 
> -oh, and English isn’t my first language. So, i’m sorry if there are some words, vocabulary / grammar mistakes, please don’t hesitate to comment on it [who knows maybe writing some fics will help me improve? I think. lol] and please enjoy!

Every single year the league champion meetings are held twice in a single year. The beginning of the year and the end of the year meetings.

The beginning of the year meetings are actually quite tolerable, as they sometimes only discuss battling tactics, strategies, and exchanging useful information to one another. While the end of the meeting is usually more serious and Alder would say _“You youngsters are too tight and serious !! loosen up a bit would’ya ?”_ And then the others would ignore him and carried on with the matter in hand.

It’s usually held in different regions every time. Which means almost all of the regional champions have to travel to the designated region to attend the meeting. And this years beginning of the year meeting is actually held in Sinnoh.

Now, usually Steven would book a flight, a week before the scheduled meeting, but this time it was a bit different as of today, the _news_ — _no_ — the _scandal_ , as Wallace would say is all over the media. He didn’t really want to go, as of right now, people are still fussing about the mystery woman, and he didn’t really want to grab anymore attention to himself than he already did.

So, perhaps he won’t travel by plane. Perhaps metagross or skarmory would be willing to travel to Sinnoh.

While maybe — _yes_ , they would be willing, he thinks. But, still it would be a quite long journey, travelling from Hoenn to Sinnoh. And the weather in Sinnoh isn’t exactly the most ideal for him — as he actually isn’t the best with cold weather, despite visiting his girlfriend’s hometown a couple of times before.

Even his parents are constantly questioning him about the woman that has caught his heart and attention. While yes, he wanted to tell them about his new lover. He wasn’t entirely sure how to confess to his parents and the entire media about his relationship with the Sinnoh champion, and was scared of the reactions that they would get.

They had been very careful and only Wallace had known about their relationship a week ago. They had been spending their quality time inside his house at Mossdeep city. But then, a certain someone decided to barge in _‘_ _uninvited‘_ with a bag of ice cream tubs and another bag of clothes. The bag of clothes itself was questionable, _by the way._

Steven shook his head remembering how _awkward_ it was for the three of them. Well..mostly for the both of them.

Wallace had walked in on them cuddling on the couch while watching tv. Steven was nevertheless relieved that Wallace didn’t walked in on them doing more than that. _Thank Arceus for that_.

Although, he still questioned how the Sootopolis gym leader managed to get in his house without both of them noticing till this day. Wallace had brushed it off, saying that they were probably too lost in the moment to even notice that he had literally broke in his house using a bobby pin. 

And while the both of them were pretty patient and calm individuals. They would be lying if they said they weren’t a little bit panicked and worried about someone finding out about them and that someone is Wallace.

To their surprise, Wallace congratulated them and decided to leave them alone for the rest of the day, and also, he gave Cynthia the bag of ice cream tubs as a gift for _“Thank you for getting my best friend out of the single pringle club”_ and he proceeded to get to the guest room and told Steven that he’ll be staying in his house until he can find his house keys.

To Steven that day was simply unexpected at all. Although their quality time was interrupted by Wallace, they still had a great time and decided to tune out Wallace’s screams from one of the guest bedrooms that night. He later found out that Wallace was actually watching this reality tv-show and was pretty excited to found out that the tv-show was available in Steven’s house.

Steven chuckled at the memory, finishing his morning coffee. But, soon got pulled back to reality when a pair of arms circled the back of his neck, right hand gently tugging his right cheek to give him a chaste kiss. “Hey, are you still deciding whether we should go by plane or not?” She said looking at the laptop in front of him, reading the flight schedule.

“Yes, i think i have decided.” He gave her a short kiss, she chuckled and whispered “I think i know what you’re going to say..”

Intrigued, he raised his left eyebrow and chuckled “Oh..? And that would be—?”

“You wanted to stay here, yes?” Hands playing with the collar of his shirt still smiling softly at him. “Ye- wait..how do you— ?” She chuckled at his shocked demeanor and simply replied “Your face tells it all, _love_.”

Face reddening at the nickname - he’s still trying to get used to nickname, it’s not like he doesn’t like it - on the contrary it made his stomach churn and his heart thumping every single time she said that. They had been dating for almost six months now. And just the thought of her still gave him butterflies. He _loves_ it. He _loves her_.

“I know you want to stay...believe me, i do too. But, it’s our duty as champions. And, although it will be hard to avoid the press and your fans...we could always ask Wallace to cover for you?” “I mean— he can try to lure them away or perhaps, ask him to put up a show or some sort. Just enough to drag their eyes from you, at least until we arrive at sinnoh.” She continued searching Steven’s eyes for approval.

Steven sighed and slumped his shoulders and leaned his back to the couch grabbing both of her hands and squeezing them gently “I suppose, yes, although i really don’t want to hear any comments from the other champions right now, especially from Alder or Lance. But, i suppose you’re right, god — how are you always so good at this?” He asked, emphasizing the last sentence as he finally turned to look at her and gently tugged her chin to kiss her. Steven could hear her amused chuckle as their lips met.

“Good at what? Convincing you to do something?” She asked cheekily as they broke apart. He replied while smiling back at her “ _Hm_..well, close enough. You’re very good at negotiating with people, especially with me..” she hummed giving his shoulders a squeeze. “Well, we still have two days before the meeting...i was wondering if you want to go back to bed?”

Steven nodded as he got up and closed his laptop. He could order those tickets later, but for now, he only wants to spend time with his girlfriend and cuddle in bed with her. He went to grab her waist and as he was about to kiss her—

“Hey, Steven do you know where my shirt-“ A voice came in to the living room as they were interrupted, yet again — by none other than Wallace. “ _Oh_. Hey there, um- well..this is—“ “I’m just gonna—“

“Could you—?” Steven nodded his head to the door behind Wallace, he had clearly just woke up from his ‘beauty’ sleep as his tired eyes were now wide opened and a wide smile was currently on his face. “Yes! I’m going to- yea, okay, i’ll _leave_ -“ Wallace had turned around and slammed the door a little bit too loudly.

“Well, that was-“ “Unexpected. And why is he still here? In my house?” “Steven, it’s Wallace. And besides, didn’t he say he lost his keys?” Steven sighed “Yes, but it’s been a week—“ “Hey, It’s alright, we can help him find his keys later, and in turn.. _perhaps_ , we could ask him to cover for us until we get to sinnoh safely?” She smiled coyly at him.

Steven knows that coy smile well enough by now that he can tell what she’s scheming. He is simply delighted at her words and chuckled amusedly under his breath nodding his head at the clever woman - who happens to be his girlfriend and said “This is one of the reasons why _i love you._ ” She replied still smiling at him “ _I love you too._ ” They kissed one more time before heading back to their shared bedroom and locked the door behind them, promising to spend their last few days together before reality happens once again.


	2. The Meeting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> New chapter is up! As always, please enjoy! (btw, english isn't my first language, so, again i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes, feel free to correct me on it!)
> 
> (For the Alola champion, i put in Moon - the female protagonist from sun & moon, to balance it out. Also, in this fic, Steven and Alder are still champions of their respective regions too, i might change that later, but, who knows.)

His hands were sweating. Suddenly aware, that the loose business pants he was wearing was too tight to be called loose pants. _God why are his rings so itchy now?_ The Air conditioner in the Sinnoh league meeting room was working as well, pus the weather in Sinnoh was currently very chilly, then again-- Sinnoh's climate was colder compared to Hoenn's climate. The tall windows were shut tightly, probably to fend off the cold winter breeze from outside. The others seemed fine. So, why was he still sweating through his clothes?

Oh. Maybe because all of the other champions were currently questioning him about the _'dating scandal'_ that was going around the entire region, from Kanto to Galar. _Heck,_ even the champion of Kanto -- Red, was looking at him expectantly beneath his red cap, not saying anything, just looking at him silently, it almost looks like he's glaring at him -- _anyways_ , this still made him uncomfortable to the point where he kept on wiping both of his hands on his pants. _Honestly, why are these pants so tight?_

"So, so, Steven, my boy! How is it going with the _'Mystery woman'_ , huh?" Alder who was sitting at his left was now doing most of the questioning and currently patting him on the back a little bit too hard. "Who is this _'Mystery woman'_ anyways?" said the Galar champion, Leon. 

"Oh, yes! I was also curious! Perhaps you could give us a hint? or just an initial would be enough, no?" Diantha chimed in. The entire room seemed to agree and nodded at each other. 

Steven coughed at the question and stuttered "Uh- well..first of all-" 

"Ah, yes! I would like to congratulate you by the way! It seems like yesterday you were the hot topic among the women -- and men, but just like that, all hope seems to be lost!" Lance exclaimed, Diantha nodded vigoriously "Even in Kalos. Sycamore has a competition it seems. But, i was wondering if the rumors were even true at all?" The rest of them wondered at Diantha's question, still waiting for Steven to say something. "What do you think, Cynthia?" Cynthia looked up with a solemn expression and asked " _Hm?_ pardon?" Diantha asked again leaning in "Do you think that the _rumors_ are true?" Steven glanced at the Sinnoh champion briefly before turning his attention back to his sweaty palms. 

Cynthia hummed "Well, i'm not one for rumors and gossip, so, i'm not really sure." Diantha pursed her lips nodding with understanding. 

Before Steven could reply to any of the questions, Moon, t _he young champion of Alola_ said "Hmm..maybe she's acquainted with the league? A gym leader maybe?" 

Diantha hummed, intrigued "Yes..indeed. Oh! Is she from Sinnoh perchance?" She looked at him expectantly, circling the rim of her tea-cup with her forefinger. 

Cynthia -- who was sitting in front of him was listening silently all this time, while sipping on her tea. Hearing the last sentence made her cough lightly. Steven shot her a worried look. Which she replied by nodding subtly at him. 

Sitting beside Cynthia was Leon, _the unbeatable champion_ , concerned he asked "Hey, mate, you okay?" Cynthia, being the calm and collected person she is simply nodded at the sentiment and smiled "Yes, i'm fine. Oh, and this tea is simply delightful. Thank you, Leon." Leon smiled back at her "Hey! no problemo! it's always nice to see other people enjoying our regional tea variant!" 

While Leon and the others was oblivious to the scene that just happened. Diantha was quick to notice however, putting her right hand beneath her chin she thought _"Hm..weird. I could've swore they were giving each other a signal or some sort..wait. No. Cynthia would've told me. And even if she didn't, someone would've recognized her right away, i mean, honestly none of the champions has the most subtle appearance, all of them are unique in their own way. That wasn't possible..or could it?"_

While Diantha was thinking these thoughts in her head, Alder suddenly asked " _Well?_ who is _she_ , Stone? do we know her?" Upon hearing the older man's question, all eyes were on Steven now. Even Cynthia, who was too calm in this situation, by the way, looked at him with a collected demeanor and raised an eyebrow. Looking at him steadily. It was as if she had practiced her expression. 

_"Why does she look calm almost all the time?!" This isn't fair."_ But even underneath all of the calmness, Steven knew that Cynthia was _slightly_ panicking. 

Steven could pick out the changes in her posture. Her hands was gripping the handle of the tea-cup a little bit too tightly, her eyes were glued to the hot tea in her hands, she was tenser than usual, puts one of her legs over the other, and her lips were thinly pressed together. Steven will have to get her to teach him on how to be so calm under these circumstances. 

Well, then again, she _wasn't_ the one who was being _interrogated_ by the rest of the champions. So, of course she would be calmer than him. 

" _Um_ , it's-" 

"Guys, i don't think Steven is ready to confess-" Moon muttered quietly, Lance quickly chimed in, nodding "Yes, we shoudn't pressure him too much. We should be able to respect his privacy, can we?"

The rest of the champions agreed, apologizing to Steven. Steven sighed "No, it's fine. I still can't really tell any of you. But..maybe _someday_." He smiled at them. The bell chimed at twelve o'clock, stating the meeting was over. 

Alder was the first one who stood up "Well, it's been quite a meeting folks! And Steven, i'm sorry for pushing on you like that, boy. But, i will be holding onto your words, _alright?_ " He chuckled leaving the meeting room, waving goodbye to all of them. Steven laughed at the Unova champion, while granted, the older man was sometimes overwhelming, he still respected the man. 

"Hey, while we're still in Sinnoh. Why don't we have dinner together at the restaurant near Sunnyshore city? c'mon, it'll be a blast!" Leon said excitedly. " _Hm_..i am quite curious about the food there. Sure, i'll go." Diantha smiled "Yeah, why not?" Moon agreed. 

Lance and Red nodded, "Very well, will Alder be joining though?" Lance added. Leon nodded "Yeah! was going to invite him via text, and-- _done!_ " putting back his rotom phone inside his pocket, "I swear for an old man, he's fast!"

"Cynthia? Steven? will you two be joining us for dinner?" Leon asked turning his head to them with wide eyes. Honestly, Steven and Cynthia couldn't say no to that face. Nobody could, _really_. 

And so, Steven chuckled "Alright. I'll be there. _Cynthia?_ " Cynthia looked up from her finished tea. "Ah- yes. Of course. Although, i must inform you, that i'll be a bit late. I've some paperwork i need to finish." she said smiling, glancing at Steven and turning her attention to the other. Diantha of course, being the observant person she is, noticed this. 

Diantha still _wasn't sure_. But, _perhaps_..her intuition was right. _Hmm..she will have to investigate later this evening. Thank goodness they were all going to get dinner together, or else her curiosity would kill her._ As the anticipation and adrenaline kicked in she stood up and grabbed her purse and hat, "Well then, i will see you all later." "I'll text y'all the informations later!" Leon said following the others out of the room. 

_And then there were two_. Silence overtook the room as Steven turned to look at Cynthia, who was now fixing her long black winter coat. 

Cynthia was the first to break, she chuckled, putting one of her hands in front of her mouth "Well..that was certainly _very amusing_." Steven huffed and gave her a wide smile, "Are you.. _laughing_ at me?" 

Cynthia continued to laugh behind her hands, a little bit louder this time. Steven shook his head, still smiling he walked over to her "I can't believe this. My own girlfriend, teasing me. Well, this is certainly quite a surprise." he chuckled amusedly, leaning on the table. As Cynthia's laughter begins to die down, she wiped the corner of her eyes and replied "Well, you looked like you were having a very hard time there." She got up and looked at him fully. 

"You know..i was a little bit worried that someone will find out." Steven took her hands in his and squeezed them in reassurance, silently listening. "I was also worried that you would be too uncomfortable, but thank god Moon stopped them from asking any further." Steven nodded "Bless that girl." Cynthia chuckled "Maybe, we'll tell them later this evening? we already told your parents, my grandparents, my sister, and Wallace. I mean-- that is if you--" Steven cut her off with a kiss, she hummed and squeezed his hands to show her amusement. 

"Of course. I would love to do that. I kinda feel bad about leaving them hanging like earlier anyways." 

"And they're like a part of our family. In a -- _unique_ kind of way, _no?_ " Cynthia tilted her head smiling softly at him. 

"Yes, like _family_ indeed."


	3. The Dinner

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 3 is up! please enjoy!
> 
> (Quarantine and the holidays has actually made me quite productive, dunno why. Cause i have like, 2 more chapters, ready to be uploaded, lol)
> 
> (English isn't my first language btw! so, i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)

Steven was _beyond_ nervous. His hands were sweating _again_. Cynthia, who was sitting beside him in the car raised one of her manicured eyebrows. She wasn't the type to put on too much cosmetic products on her face, but she occasionally dresses up to the events she was invited to, dates with Steven, or even dinner gatherings, like this evening. It made her look even more _radiant,_ as Steven had said earlier. Currently, Steven's driver was driving them to the designated restaurant. _Thankful_ , that he wouldn't have to drive there, otherwise the steering wheel would've been drenched by his sweat. 

They had all been invited to dinner by Leon at one of the prestigious restaurants in Sinnoh. That is also one of the reasons why Cynthia decided to dress up for the evening. But, her partner however, was literally shaking, she noticed. 

" _Hey_ , it's going to be alright. _I'm here._ " Cynthia whispered, squeezing his hand, and giving him a peck in the cheek. Steven let out a huff in return, although still worried about the others finding out about them, he quickly gave in to Cynthia's gentle words. _"As long as she's by my side..i'll be fine. We'll be fine."_ he thought to himself. 

"Are you sure we're going in there together?" _I mean_ , i would love that, but are you sure you're going to be alright?" 

"I could always tell the driver to drop me off until you're in the build-" Steven chuckled at, gently taking one of her hands, he kissed it "While that is a good suggestion. I actually would like to enter that building with my stunning girlfriend. And besides, i need to be brave to keep up with you, _yes_?"

Cynthia laughed breathlessly, nodding her head slowly at him "Of course, if you're sure." Steven kissed the palm of her hand, giving butterfly kisses " _I am_. I have never been more sure in my life."

Cynthia hummed in response " _Also_ , i beg to differ, Mr. Stone, you are easily one of the bravest person i know, and-- may i add, _the kindest_." He smiled at the words his partner said "Well, it takes one to know one, hm?" She rolled her eyes amusingly. 

The car suddenly stopped, the driver politely went around the car to open the door for the both of them. Before heading out however, Cynthia had noticed a flash of worried look on Steven's face, _"It's going to be alright, love. I'm here."_ she whispered in his ear. The Hoenn champion finally tells himself to listen to Cynthia and man up. Being the gentleman he is he let out his right hand so that she can hold onto it.   
  


Before they entered the fancy building, Cynthia ignored the looks that they were getting and proceeded to kiss him on the cheek.

Even though Leon booked a reservation for a private booth at the restaurant. There were still a lot of waiters and waitresses staring at them and whispering, probably gossiping about the rumors being true. They were probably also surprised that the woman, the silver-haired man was dating was none other than their own stunning champion, Cynthia. Meanwhile, the stares and whispers were the ones that were making Cynthia worried and nervous. 

Granted, Cynthia wasn't really the best with the press, she tried to be polite to them though, whenever the press wanted to interview her about something. Then again, she wasn't that interested in the media in general. There was also this _trend_ \-- that Wallace called, where all of the people made profiles or accounts for themselves on the internet, you can follow the person you're looking for and like their pictures. 

Even the other league members, including the professors, had made an account of their own. While Cynthia had an account already -- courtesy of Flint, he was actually the one who helped the other Elite four members ( _including Bertha_ ) and herself, to create their own accounts on the internet. 

Cynthia never really used it that much. Only posting some pictures of her own pokemon and desserts that she ate. She occasionally likes Diantha and Leon's pictures, the Kalos and Galar champion were the ones who constantly posted new pictures almost every single day. 

Cynthia was sort of shocked to hear that Steven doesn't have one. So, _Wallace_ , being the _good friend_ he is, made one for him. Steven wasn't that thrilled about it though, telling Cynthia and Wallace that he wasn't going to use it anyways. _So, that was a lie._ On one evening, Cynthia actually got several notifications, telling her somebody liked her pictures, and the culprit was, _yup_ , you _guessed_ it, _Steven Stone_. Cynthia blushed at the memory, chuckling to herself. The memory itself had actually helped her with the anxiety she was feeling right now. _"Great, we're here." she thought._

"Here we are. Are you ready?" Her partner asked still intertwining their hands together. "I'm ready when you are." 

"Well then, let's go, _shall we?_ " Steven opened the door to the private booth to find all of the champions present. Chattering among themselves, all dressed up for dinner. Their chattering died down, as they gaped at the newly arrived couple. Nobody had said anything since the door opened, nor were they moving a muscle. It certainly made the both of them even more anxious than before. 

The silence was broken off by none other than Diantha, who merely chuckled amusingly at them "I _knew_ it! Oh, _arceus!_ you two were quite good at hiding it, i must admit." She glanced at Cynthia smirking. Oh, how Cynthia shivered at that expression Diantha was wearing. Winking at Cynthia she continued "But, i guess, i would be too if i were to have an _attractive partner_."

Moon and Leon gasped, the younger girl squealed beside Diantha. "I wasn't expecting this at all. Y-you two _are_ \--?" Lance gaped, his mouth as big as a pelipper. "Careful Lance, don't want any *Cutieflies flying to your mouth later." Steven teased, gesturing to the wide opened mouth. Embarrassed the dragon tamer closed his mouth carefully. 

Leon finally puts his hands on either sides of his cheeks and commented " _Dude_! i can't believe this is happening. This is wonderful news! Congratulations you two!" beside him Red could only nod at them respectfully, Steven could swear that he saw the corner of his mouth slightly turning upwards. 

"Yes, it is _certainly_ very unexpected!" Diantha chimed in, giving Cynthia a teasing look, clearly enjoying the tortured -- embarrassed look, Cynthia was sporting on right now. She rolled her eyes playfully at Diantha, to which the latter replied by laughing gleefully. 

Alder who hasn't said a single word finally spoke up "Why..this is _unbelievable_. Steven, _my boy!_ you are _very_ lucky indeed. Both of you are. Congratulations you two!" He smiled widely at the both of them. Although, Cynthia had clearly saw him mope around in his seat just a second ago -- possibly remembering the days where he would pursue her to go on a date with him. And _everytime_ he asked, she would politely decline his invite. 

" _Oh_ , and don't you two worry. You're secret is safe with us. _We promise._ " Alder added laughing, standing up and pulling the both of them to seat next to him. The rest of the champions agreed to keep their relationship a secret from the public eye. Happy that they finally came clean about their relationship to one of the most important people in their lives. 

"So, when did it start?" Lance asked "If you don't mind us asking, of course." He continued. Steven turned his attention to the Sinnoh champion beside him, both of them staring at each other with love in their eyes. Cynthia smiled reassuringly, "Well, you see, if we're talking about the beginning of it all, it actually happened a year ago--"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -Notes: *Cutieflies, i switched the usual expression for "Careful or you'll get flies in your mouth" with "Cutiefly" (I mean, it doesn't really look like a fly, but it's close enough, right?)


	4. The day Wallace found out

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 4! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)

The day Wallace found out about them was on a rainy saturday. Steven had just finished his paperwork, and was looking forward to spending the evening with Cynthia. The latter had cooked dinner for the both of them while Steven was occupied with work. Steven was tasked to set up the movie they're gonna watch while eating dinner. And the heavy rain outside was just the perfect touch to this lovely evening that they've been anticipating for. 

Both of them were very busy with the league and their own work, that they haven't had the time to spend time with each other. Only calling and sending text messages to each other when they're free. Meeting each other was quite a pain as well. As they're currently still keeping their relationship a secret. Steven's house and Cynthia's dorm in the Sinnoh pokemon league, were the places they went to spend most of their time together. Going on public dates was risky, but they tend to go to the caves and ruins if they really wanted to go outside. 

As of now, they were pretty comfortable with the situation they were in, sitting on the big couch in the middle of the living room. Cynthia having finished her dinner, waits for Steven to finish his, so that she can wash the dishes. 

Steven's eyes were currently glued to the movie they were watching, while munching on the food that Cynthia made. Cynthia's gaze however was not focused on the movie, but was focused on her lover's face instead, watching his cheeks moving as he ate. She thinks he looked cute when his eyes were focused on something. She especially likes it when those eyes were focused on hers. Cynthia chuckled to herself _"My, my, he actually looks very cute like this--"_

"You're staring." He teased, putting away the eating utensils and leaned to grab the glass of wine, sipping on it. 

" _Hm,_ can you blame me?" Cynthia hummed, cocking her head, she mimicked Steven's actions. Steven scoffed "And, what, pray tell, exactly were you staring at?"

Cynthia twirled her glass, smile widening into a playful smirk " _You_. You looked _very cute_ when you are focused like that. Like, a young boy watching his favorite sunday morning tv-show, while eating the breakfast waffles his mother made." Steven gave her a perplexed look, as she continued to stare at the man in front of her, she opened her mouth trying to say something, but as Steven's eyes seemed to stare at her soul, she averted her eyes from him and blushed, flustered. 

_"Your cheeks. They're very cute."_ She finally added, whispering the last part, the comment, made Steven laugh lightly, scooting closer to Cynthia, he puts an arm around her back, kissing her temple, and muttered "I'm flattered.". 

"You do know i have to wash the dishes, right?" 

"I'll do it. You've made us a wonderful dinner, it's the least i could do." Steven mumbled in her hair, inhaling the fresh scent of her shampoo. 

Cynthia leaned in a bit to put back the empty glass on the sizable black-marbled coffee table. "Tomorrow, i'm thinking of making you those waffles. We can watch another movie before i head out to work?"

"That sounds _perfect_." Cynthia kissed him suddenly, making the young man's heart beat faster than ever. 

As the sounds of the rain grew, Cynthia muttered "It's been pouring a lot recently, huh?", leaning back to lie her head on his broad chest, snuggling closer to him, she turned her attention towards the rain. "Yes, _honestly_ , we're pretty lucky that the weather was sunny when i picked you up earlier." he hummed agreeing with her. As they continued to make small, light conversations with each other, the rain pours down even heavily this time. 

Unbeknownst to the both of them, a tall-figured man was currently crouching in front of the Hoenn champion's house. The man was none other than Wallace. 

Tailored clothes wet, his usually stylish hair was dripping onto his face and hands, his shoes covered with mud, making the pavement to Steven's house painted with muddy footprints, he clicked his tongue for the second time today.

_"Arceus!"_ Wallace grunted, standing up fully, placing both hands on his hips. " _Why_ isn't it working? It seems _so easy_ on the internet." He huffed, putting down the plastic bags that he brought with him on the way to his best friend's house.

Suddenly the cloud rumbled and led out a horrifying thunder that made the water-type gym leader jump, " _Alright_. Let's do this again." He crouched in front of the big wide door and proceeded to take out another bobby pin, beginning to tinker with the doorknob again.

And with a few, frustrating attempts, he finally opened the door, clapping both of his hands excitedly and squealing silently _"Yes!"_ He took a peek inside, not seeming to care that his wet hair and clothes was dripping on the maroon carpet, making it wet.

He took a look around Steven's house, and when he felt like nobody was present, he invited himself in. 

Wallace had the initiative to take off his shoes and socks, however. When he turned to place them onto the shoe-rack, he could't help but notice a pair of black high-heels, with single yellow stripes, standing out between all the black shoes that Steven wore on a daily basis. _"Oh..?"_

_"Hm. Now, that's strange. High-heels. Could it be Steven's mother visiting?"_ Wallace thought, scratching his chin with wet fingers. He shook his head _"No, wait. Didn't she visit Steven two days ago? This is very strange. Could it be--? No-- he wouldn't--"_

Curiosity seemed to have taken a liking to Wallace. Well, not like Wallace was ever not curious about anything. Especially, when it comes to Steven's love life. _He was his best friend for goodness sake._ Of course he would be curious about the woman who caught Steven's attention. That man was always so stiff when it comes to girls. The blind dates that Wallace had tried to put him on always ended up poorly. Whether it was because they weren't compatible or Steven was just not interested. Well, mostly the latter. Still, Wallace is Steven's best friend, and he would do anything in his power to see his best friend happy. And yes, he had heard about the _rumors -- or -- the dating scandal_ , that Steven was involved in. Steven was currently the hot topic of the press, apparently. One of Wallace's reasons to crash into his best friend's house was to tease him about it. And seeing the hint right in front of his eyes adds to his excitement. 

_"Tsk, tsk, Steven. You sly dog.."_ Wallace snickered to himself, trying his best to stay quiet, he proceeded to step into Steven's house like a burglar. What was he doing you ask? Wallace wanted to surprise Steven and his _'lady friend'_ of course. He wouldn't pass up the opportunity to embarrass Steven. 

The walls in Steven's house was decked with cupboards and shelves filled with stones and fossils. They're pretty much the whole decoration to Steven's house, there's occasionally some flowers here in there to brighten up the dull place. 

As Wallace walked further down the end of the hall, there were two different halls separated from each other, he quietly peeked to the right hall, which happens to be the hall where the guest bedrooms were located. While the left hall, leads to -- what Wallace hoped to be the clueless couple, still oblivious to the snooping gym leader. 

When he got closer to the living room, he noticed the place was dimly lit, the television was on, and playing some sort of movie, he smirked, _"Oh? Watching something together i see..how romantic."_ he wiggled his eyebrows, snickering to himself, yet again.

When Wallace tried to get closer, he heard whispering noises. Intrigued, he tried to peek by the corner of the large ceramic table, and crawled underneath it carefully, by now, the whispers were too muffled, he could barely make out the words they were saying. He tried to get closer without getting noticed, only to get a glimpse of Steven's long legs underneath the blanket, presumably shared. His efforts on trying to get a glimpse of the woman Steven's with was fruitless though, as the dim lighting wasn't helping. 

A few seconds passed, the whispering had died down, the room fell in silence. Wallace grabbed his belongings finally deciding to just ambush them in the act. 

_One.._

_Two..._

_Three...._

_"You're so busted, young man!"_ Wallace shouted, the clouds rumbled in the background as he scared the living skeletons out of the couple in front of him. _"I knew it! I knew you weren't as slick as you thought!"_ Wallace screamed louder, pointing a finger at Steven, eyes closed, as he made a dramatic pose. 

" _Now, now,_ you must be the woman who has stolen my best friend's hea--" his world trailed off as he opened one of his eyes to look directly at the startled blonde woman's eyes. Studying the woman beside Steven, his eyes widened, jaw dropping, he glanced at their intertwined hands and slowly understands what was happening. The room fell silent once again, only the sound of the pouring rain and the noises from the movie filled the room. It was certainly very awkward.

Steven was the first to spoke up "Wallace, i'm sure you already knew Cynthia..and Cynthia this is Wallace, the Sootopolis gym leader and my best friend." Steven cleared his throat continuing "Wallace. _What_ are you doing here? When did you come in--? And how in earth..?" 

_"Well, well, well."_ Wallace clapped loudly, laughing hysterically. Cynthia's flustered face scrunched up, baffled, she turned to Steven, as if questioning something.

As Wallace's laughter died down, he immediately replied to Steven's questions " _First of all,_ i'm here because my house keys are missing. And _yes_ , i've looked everywhere for the spare key. But, alas, it was mysteriously gone as well. _Strange_ , i know. _Second of all_ , i was thinking of staying in you place for a bit, until i've found the urge to find my house keys. And, to answer your last question, well, it's quite simple, _really_."

Wallace grabbed the bobby pin from his pocket and showed it to them with pride "Behold!"

"You got in with _a bobby pin..?_ " Steven massaged his temples, the other man nodded "Bingo. Oh, and don't think you could get away with this, mister." He pointed at Steven sighing exaggeratedly "How could you do this, Steven? Why didn't you tell me you were dating somebody! And that somebody, is the Sinnoh champion. _Boy_ , do you have a lot of explaining to do."

Steven then started to explain, "Well, we're not ready, _yet_." He stopped to look at Cynthia's eyes, she was still as flustered as Steven of course, but when both of their eyes meet, it made Steven relieved that she was there with him. Cynthia smiled encouragingly at him, he continued "We still want time. Time to spend together, just the two of us." Wallace realizing something, he thought _"Ah. They're in love...that's heckin' adorable."_ Wallace shaked his head, "Well, as much as i want to stand here chatting-- It's _lovely_ to finally meet you by the way, you look very dazzling in real life, Cynthia--" Cynthia chuckled smiling politely at him "The pleasure is all mine." "Can i borrow one of your guest rooms, _please_? i don't want to end up getting a cold. And, this wet look isn't very flattering, _now is it?_ " 

Steven nodded to one of the doors behind him "Go ahead. What are _those_ by the way?" Steven gestured to the soaked plastic bags he was holding. 

"Hm? Oh, yes! Almost forgot--" He stepped closer to Cynthia and handed her one of the plastic bags, smiling widely at her " _Oh_ \-- um- this is..?" She trailed, politely taking the bag with a confused smile.

"Those are ice creams. Bought them at the grocery store earlier. Consider it as a present from me, as you, my dear Cynthia, have officially snatched my best friend's lonely stone heart--" _"Hey!"_ Steven grumbled, hearing the two banter made Cynthia smile in amusement, but finding out the bag contained _'ice creams'_ made her light up. 

"Thank you, for getting my best friend out of the single pringle club!" Wallace cheered, making Steven grunt in embarrassment and annoyance.

Before Wallace decided to leave them alone and turn in for the day, he was drenched to the bones as he didn't want to get sick. Before Wallace could leave however, Steven said "Wallace, thank you for the ice cream. And, would you please keep this a secret?" Wallace nodded understandingly "Don't worry, i won't tell a soul."

Hearing that made the two relieved. Wallace, to Steven, was, even though, sometimes tiring to deal with, he's actually a nice and caring guy, not to mention, thoughtful, at times. Steven was certainly very thankful that he had a best friend like Wallace. Even if his best friend _had literally broke into_ his house. 


	5. The Questions

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 5! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)

Cynthia was currently standing in front of the ice cream parlor in Veilstone city's department store. The Sinnoh Champion had just finished battling a new challenger, and if she had to frank, it was both exhilarating and exhausting. The new challenger that came into her chambers, was not some rookie trainer. _No_ , the challenger was quite a challenge indeed. Cynthia had to give it to that trainer, they were exceptionally strong, although their recklessness did made them lose. And after all that battling made her hungry. 

Cynthia had made a quick run to the pokemon center and healed up her pokemon, then, proceeded to fly to Veilstone city to grab some ice cream to help her cool off. Of course she bought some treats for her pokemon as well, treating them for yet another victory this week. 

While waiting in line, she decided to send a text message to Steven, her boyfriend. Steven was currently helping his father with a new project that they've been developing for the past few months. Cynthia updated him about the previous events that had happened, hoping to entertain him, and distracting him from the stress, the project was giving him. She of course, wasn't expecting a fast response, as it was in the middle of work hours back in Hoenn. While here, in Sinnoh it was a nice breezy evening. Long distance wasn't the ideal, per say, but, the couple made it work. It was like they were there for each other, even though they lived in separate regions. 

Cynthia looked up just in time as the previous customer walked away, just as she was about to give her order, a familiar feminine voice called out to her. Cynthia could swear, that the hair on her hands stood up upon hearing the voice. She sighed as she straightened her posture, "So much for taking a break--" she turned around smiling to greet the caller. 

_"Diantha."_

_"Cynthia."_

Cynthia sighed again, still smiling she spoke up " _Well_ , this is certainly a surprise. What brings you here?" While Cynthia was thrilled that her friend was here, she couldn't help but feel like she would be tortured with questions later. The actress is a great friend, _but sometimes, she can be quite scary..._

" _Why_ , i'm here to film my new movie. I'm actually on my break now." She smiled at her, eyes travelling to stare at the ice cream parlor behind Cynthia. 

_"Having a late evening snack i see--"_ Cynthia scoffed _"Can you blame me? I had a quite long day. And i'm sure you are too, that's why you're here, yes?"_

Diantha laughed, shaking her head ''Yes, well, i'm actually looking for a new winter coat. It's getting cold here in Sinnoh, especially in Snowpoint City. I heard Veilstone has some great looking ones." she gestured to the different clothing stores near them.

" _Well_ , i won't keep you from your coats--"

" _Actually_ , while i'm here, i was wondering if you wanted to catch up, before i go." Diantha smiled coyly at her. _This woman. The Kalos champion was a sly woman. She was, to Cynthia -- the epitome of a fox._ Cynthia would describe her as somewhat of _a cunning woman, yes, it was certainly the right word for her._ Cynthia knew all too well, what she was trying to do. _No, not today,_ she _will no_ t succumb to the cunning play that the actress was planning. 

"I _actually_ have plans with my grand--" 

" _Oh?_ And yet you still have the time to fly here, to Veilstone city, and buying ice cream" Diantha shaked her head, chuckling evilly at the baffled young woman in front of her. 

"After all this years, you are still trying to lie to me."

_"Tsk, tsk, i thought you were better than this, my dear Cynthia."_ Her smile slowly turned into a smirk, hand on her hip, challenging Cynthia.

See what Cynthia meant? _This woman knows everything. It was terrifying. Or maybe it's just because Cynthia was bad at lying_ \-- anyways, Cynthia decided to give in. What harm could this faithful meeting could possibly bring anyways? Well, it was Cynthia's mission to find out. 

Now, both ladies were sitting on opposite sides in a quaint small coffee place inside the building. The serene atmosphere turned to a tense one, after Diantha had finally blurted out the burning question that she was dying to ask the other woman. 

Lips quivering and eyes widened, Cynthia gasped _"Wh-what? Excuse me--?"_

Diantha laughed behind one of her manicured hands. Unbelievable. This woman was unbelievable. Cynthia scoffed, as she sipped on her tea, ignoring the question. 

" _I mean_ , i don't see the harm in asking _that question?_ "

_"Unless, that is, if you already did."_

Cynthia crossed her arms, playfully glaring at the slightly older woman, _"Whether or not we have done that, doesn't concern you, my dear Diantha."_ She emphasized the last words, which made Diantha widen her own eyes. "You mean, you haven't even _thought_ of sleeping together and cuddling in the same bed with--?" Cynthia stared blankly at Diantha, staying silent. To answer Diantha's question, _yes_ , yes they have slept together in the same bed, _they cuddle too._ But, Cynthia didn't want to give her friend the satisfaction of knowing that. 

Giving in, Diantha leaned in and lowered her voice at her, " _Then_..have you two met each other's relatives?"

Cynthia raised her brow, feeling a little bit relaxed by the question, "Yes, we have actually. They were really nice to me -- his parents. And vice versa."

_"And..i trust Steven is treating you well?"_ Diantha whispered inaudibly, but it was loud enough for Cynthia to hear from her seat. 

Cynthia's glare was replaced by her usual solemn and calm expression that she wore, it made Diantha content, to see her best friend happy with her chosen partner. 

Cynthia smiled softly at her _"Yes, he does. He..makes me more than happy. And i- I love him.."_

Diantha sighed wistfully at Cynthia, she was very happy when she found out that, her best friend had finally found a man, that loved her, just as much as she loved him. Diantha couldn't express how happy and thrilled she was, upon hearing Cynthia's confession. Studying Cynthia's soft, solemn expression, while talking about him, made her smile with joy. _"Perhaps, i should stop asking for more details..next time however--" "--you aren't going anywhere, my dear." D_ iantha thought to herself. The both of them ended up parting ways outside the department store. Saying their goodbyes and best wishes to each other. 

It was certainly a tiring and exhilarating day indeed. 


	6. The Weird Man with Silver Hair

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 6! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)

Everything was a mess. It was total chaos. Her room was a total mess, the bedroom floor filled with lots of paperwork and research papers. The ancient books stacked up, forming a book of stairs, it almost looked like they were gonna fall anytime soon.

A mug of unfinished coffee turned cold on top of her desk. Cynthia had fallen asleep on her desk yet again. Looking at her rotom phone, blinking several times before her eyes widened at the screen. _"It's 11:30 already?!"_ Cynthia stood up immediately causing the stack of books behind her to fall down, creating a loud noise. Cynthia winced at the sound it made, hopefully it wasn't loud enough for her grandmother to hear.

Cynthia looked frantically between the scattered books down on the floor and towards the door that led to her bathroom. She contemplated on taking a shower before cleaning up after her mess she made. She sighed heavily, then tried to walk carefully around the mess, hoping she wouldn't accidentally bump into one of her things. Her childhood room was quite spacious, having a queen-sized bed on the middle of the room, bookshelves adorned the walls, few cupboards containing some of her personal belongings, a wide window on the left side of her room, covered by black satin curtains, and lastly, to the right of the bed, was a door to the bathroom.

As soon as Cynthia freshened up, she looked around her room once again. Her shoulders slumped just by looking at the mess around her room. 

The night before, she was actually researching on the new phenomenon that happened in the Galar region. And, while, the Galar champion himself, informed and demonstrated it to the her and the other champions, she was particularly interested in how it actually occurred and wanted to research the phenomenon further herself, turning to her grandmother and Professor Rowan for help on her research. Cynthia wasn't a professor or some sort, but she would call herself as a dedicated researcher. And dedicated she was. Cynthia's eyes immediately fell to the drawings that were pasted on to her bedroom walls. 

" _Not again_..i really should stop doing that. Or else, i wouldn't hear the end of it from grandmother." She muttered, grabbing the cold mug of coffee, she sipped on it, quickly sputtering it back, frowning at the taste, she puts it back onto the table. Cynthia sat on her bed, feeling like something was missing. The Sinnoh champion massaged her temples, as if it could help her remember something from last night. It wasn't as if she was drunk or anything -- she was merely a little bit worn out from working all night. Something made her feel like there was something she forgot to do. As Cynthia kept on trying to gain her memories, the doorbell to her house rang loudly, making her jolt up. 

Just as she was about to get up and go get the door, she heard her grandmother's voice, it seemed like it was a guest of her's. And so Cynthia decided to take out her phone and checked on her emails and text messages. While there are no new emails directed to her, there are some new text messages, and "Oh, no..." They were all from Steven. 

Cynthia gasped, hands covering her mouth, dropping her phone. 

_"Oh, arceus..no. How could this be?_ " How could she forget that he was supposed to be here to pick her up to go on their date. Cynthia was waiting so long for this day, but how could she forgot that the date was today?! Today, they were planning to go to Iron island. Steven had wanted her to tag along with him and Byron, in hopes to both spend time together and to find some new rocks. 

_"Cynthia, dear, your boyfriend is here!"_

Cynthia sighed looking down on her hands, "Steven is going to be disapointed in me, isn't he?" 

  
_"Cynthia? Are you there child?_ " Her grandmother shouted again. Cynthia called out, "Y-yes grandmother! Please, tell him i'll be right there." Panicking she waved her hands frantically, trying to figure out on how to clean up her room and how to greet Steven. Well, at least she's dressed up to go, but, still, she needed to clean up, she was afraid that her grandmother will scold her again. 

She could send out her pokemon, like Roserade, Garchomp, or even Lucario, to help her clean up. Cynthia nodded her head at the idea, and grabbed the three pokeballs in her hand and threw them gently into the air.   
  


As the three pokemon let out their battle cry, she couldn't help but feel bad for her pokemon. Cynthia was not letting them out to aid her in battle, or to have fun. No, instead, she was letting them out to help with her mess. It was like giving false hope to a child -- kind of. Cynthia was definitely going to award them for this later. 

As her pokemon looked around her messy room, Cynthia winced silently. Garchomp was the first one to grunt at her, staring at Cynthia like she knows what her trainer wanted them to do. Garchomp was Cynthia's first ever partner, and she has been by Cynthia's side the longest, they were even roughly, the same age, if that makes sense. So, naturally the land-shark pokemon knows all her habits and flaws.   
  


Cynthia smiled apologetically at her pokemon, stepping over the books to pat her Garchomp on her head gently, she glanced at the other two, and spoke softly to them, "I'm sorry, i know i shouldn't have stayed up all night researching again. And i'm sorry for dragging all of you into my own mess."

Garchomp had also noticed the way her trainer gave them a tired smile, her usual sharp eyes were replaced by tired ones, the color of her eyes were also slightly dull, her hair wasn't properly brushed, like she always did in the mornings. Seeing her like this always made the dragon-type sad, it made Garchomp remember all of the hardships and tears they went through together. It also made Cynthia and all of her team members stronger. Garchomp felt proud to call Cynthia her trainer. Garchomp nudged her trainer's hands, and grunted a few times, it was almost like she was scolding Cynthia, like she was saying, _"You know working too much is bad for you, right? I swear, you've not changed at all."_

Cynthia chuckled at Garchomp, " _I know, Garchomp._ I'm sorry for worrying all of you." She turned to look at her other two pokemon, standing next to her. Roserade smiled and hugged her legs enthusiastically, Lucario followed suit, Garchomp cooed understandingly at her trainer, and lastly, a pair of strong arms wrapped around her mid-riff, face planted on the crook of Cynthia's neck. _"Oh..? Hello there, stranger."_

Garchomp growled at the new person that entered her chambers. Cynthia laughed softly, "It's alright, it's just Steven." she patted Garchomp's head, reassuring her, Garchomp had of course met Steven and his party pokemon, while she was pretty docile to his party, she wasn't particularly fond of the man. She was just afraid that the _'man with the silver hair'_ would break her trainer's heart. But, seeing Cynthia smile always made her worries go away, Cynthia does seem _happier_ when she's with the weird man with silver hair. In her free time, when there are no battles to be fought, Cynthia often let out her pokemon to run around the backyard back at the pokemon league. Garchomp would make conversations with her other members, mostly talking about the _'weird man with silver hair'_ , she was also glad when the others were all looking out for their trainer, taking turns to observe Cynthia's emotions when the Sinnoh champion is seen hanging around the _'weird man with silver hair'_ , Roserade wasn't particularly interested though, she had stated that there was no need to be suspicious of the _'weird man with silver hair'_ , and somehow, only the bouquet pokemon knows his name. "Before you say anything-- i actually overheard you earlier, when you were talking with your pokemon. I wanted to apologize for barging into your room, uninvited."

Garchomp turned her attention back to the two humans, who were currently in each others arms, "No, please, don't apologize..i should be the one to apologize to you--" Steven raised his eyebrow, tilting his head, waiting patiently for her to continue. 

"Steven, i'm sorry i didn't reply to your messages, you see, i just happened to have fallen asleep on my desk last night. And forgot to clean up this mess i made.." she explained, Garchomp called out Roserade and Lucario, gesturing at their pokeballs, and then glanced back at her trainer. Both Roserade and Lucario nodded, understanding Garchomp's intentions, they each pressed their own pokeballs and returned themselves back, leaving only Garchomp and the couple. She still wants to keep her eye on the weird man. Garchomp squinted _"God-- why does he have silver hair? is that even normal?"_ Garchomp thought to herself. 

" _Ah--_ i see, i actually was just worried that you had forgotten about our date."

"I actually did..but, after reading the text messages you left me-- i'm sorry, truly."

"No, it's quite alright. Although, i've to confess, that i sometimes made a mess similar to this actually.." He chuckled sheepishly, straightening to scratch his collar, as he looked at her gently. Cynthia smiled apologetically, "I seem to have lost track of time, when i'm focused on something. Could i make it up to you by treating you to brunch?" stepping closer to her lover, "I was actually thinking of something even better, you see--" Steven replied, brushing her hair. 

_"Oh?"_ Cynthia's lips hovered over his, "I was wondering if you would let me take you to brunch, before we head out to Iron island." 

Cynthia smiled, closing the distance between them, humming pleasantly at the warm feeling in her stomach. "That'll be lovely." 

Garchomp scoffed upon the scene the two displayed, making Steven and Cynthia laugh, "But first, i think we should clean this place up, don't you think." Steven tease, earning several grunts from the room, he laughed amusingly, _"Like pokemon, like trainer."_


	7. The Sleepover

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 7! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)
> 
> (oh, and i actually kind of like this chapter, for some reason. lol. And i hope you do too!)

Moon glanced nervously at the two men in her room. Neither men seemed to want to give up anytime soon. She glanced at the door behind her, gulping, she glanced at the clock on the wall, 15 more minutes..Moon wiped the non-existent sweat on her forehead. _"Oh no-- they're coming back soon. What should i do--?"_

_"Argh!!"_

Moon jumped at the sudden shout one of the men let out. 

"Blast it!!!"

"Dang it, no--!!"

"What in the bloody hell?!!"

Moon winced at the curse words both men shouted. Moon scratched her head, suddenly remembering that her hair was currently in a braid, that Cynthia and Diantha made for her. They were all having a sleepover at her place tonight, Cynthia having blurted out that she never had a sleepover before, making Diantha and Moon quite excited to throw her one-- it was a pretty casual sleepover, they wore onesies, painted each other's nails, playing some games, gossiping, and right now, she was left alone in her room, the two older women were cooking something downstairs -- well, that is before the boys decided they could come over and let themselves in. While Moon wasn't hostile towards guests or in this case her friends? -- Moon doesn't know what to call them, but she did kind of think them as her older siblings, she had once even almost called Cynthia -- _'Big sis'_ \-- thankfully, Cynthia was quite distracted back then, but even thinking of it made her slightly embarrassed. Although, she still wished they were all her older siblings. 

"Oh, c'mon! That's not fair!!" 

"You're not fair--!!" 

Moon sighed nervously, fiddling with her decidueye onesie, it was her favorite one, she thinks it made her look like an archer. She was supposed to pick a movie, why did she even let them in anyways? -- maybe, because she felt sorry for them -- it was quite late. Perhaps, she should rewind on what had actually happened. 

While Moon was waiting for the Sinnoh and Kalos champion, she turned on the tv, wanting to find the movie before the others finished cooking. Then, out of the blue, a figure -- no, a pokemon? appeared, hovering near her bedroom window, at first she shrugged it off, thinking it was a wild pokemon or something. But then, the figure -- or -- pokemon, started to knock on her window, startling her. Moon wasn't particularly scared of paranormal things, and she has her pokemon to protect her -- if anything decides to attack or scare her. Curious, Moon walked closer to her window, grabbing one of her pokeballs -- presumably, her starter -- she just wished it wasn't some kind of creepy stalker, because if it was the case -- she would not hold back. The closer she got to the hovering figure, she squinted, while tightening her grip on her pokeball, she began to make up two figures and a flying pokemon, the two figures sitting on the pokemon's back. Then, the one of the figures started saying something -- the man's voice was muffled, and since it was quite dark outside, she couldn't really make up their faces. _"Moon-- let us in."_

Moon tensed up, _"How did they know her name? And are they riding on top of a charizard--?"_ she thought while peeking to the pokemon's dragon-like wings and the one which made Moon sure it was a charizard, was the little flame on its tail. Before the two figures could call out to her again, she hastily opened the windows, and said "Leon..? is that you?" she squinted her eyes, to get a better look at the two strangers. 

"Yeah, mate! Heard you were having a sleepover! Hope you didn't mind us coming!" Leon snickered, behind him, Steven was smiling sheepishly at her. Moon stared blankly at them and sighed, rolling her eyes, but, still wanted to be polite, she decided to let them in. 

Leon's face lighted up, recalling his charizard before glancing around her bedroom, Moon huffed sitting on top of her bed, playing with her starter's pokeball, " _So_ , are you guys going to tell me why you're here ?" Steven glanced at Leon, who shrugged back "Don't look at me like that, dude. I'm only the designated driver--" Leon trailed off, scrunching her face Moon followed Leon's gaze towards her nintendo switch. " _Oh, my gods-- is that?!_ _Holy mother of--_ you have the new version of the nintendo switch?!" He gasped, as he held it in his hands, examining it. The excitement that the Galar champion let out made Moon chuckle, "Yup, mom bought it for my 18th birthday." 

" _No, bloody way!_ Can i--?" Leon asked quietly, looking for Moon's approval, she sighed "You guys know that the others are right downstairs, right?" 

Leon pouted and mumbled "Man, Steven why didn't you surprise her in the morning? Now, i can't try Moon's switch.." Steven sighed shaking his head "You said it yourself didn't you? if i surprised her in the middle of the night, it'll be more romantic--" "Wait. So, you two are here to surprise Cynthia?" The boys nodded, Leon spoke up "Well, technically, Steven is. I'm just here for moral support and the getaway driver." Moon sighed "You should've told me you were coming then, maybe i could help."

Steven smiled at Moon "Oh, no, no, it's alright. On the other hand, i'm really sorry to bother you in the middle of the night, it isn't polite of us, truly, i apologize once again." Moon smiled back at him "It's fine, i guess you must miss her a lot, huh?" Steven scratched his neck absentmindedly, blushing. "You guys can stay, i guess-- But, don't say i didn't warn you.." Leon saluted "You got it, ma'am! Steven! sit, play with me." Leon had already sat on one of the beanbags on the floor, he patted the beanbag next to him, telling the Hoenn champion to play with him. 

"Uh-- okay, i never played on the switch before.."

Leon gasped dramatically at the words that Steven let out " _No!_ really, dude?" Steven nodded, laughing at the flabbergasted expression Leon was sporting on. "Yeah, never even owned one. So, what are we playing?" 

Leon smirked, "Only one of the best games ever!"

\------present time------

_"Steven!! Don't you freakin' dare--!"_

_"Arceus--! Stop doing that!"_

_"That's Karma, you prick--!"_

Moon glanced at the clock yet again, _"Uh..guys, i don't think you need to--"_

"Moon! We're back with some snacks!" Moon panicked, grabbing the hem of both men's collars -- but, soon found out that they were both too heavy for her to pull up, she panicked "Oh no! What should we do, you guys, think!"

_"Steven--?"_ Moon, Leon, and Steven froze, turning their heads slowly to face the Sinnoh champion, wearing a Garchomp onesie, looking as puzzled as Diantha, although Diantha's expression was to unreadable as there were quite a lot of expressions going on in her face. Steven widened his eyes, standing up and immediately blurted out "Cynthia! i-- can explain.", looking at his girlfriend wearing the onesie, actually made him even more flustered than before, although, he of course knew, that this wasn't the time to just stand and stare at his adorable girlfriend. 

_"Hey, guys.._ " Leon muttered, waving at the ladies by the door, "I like your onesies. Where did you get them--?" _"Ouch!"_ His words were cut off by a wince, Moon -- had stepped on his foot -- attempting to shut his mouth, she glared at him, nodding her head to the door, as if telling him they were getting out of the room. 

Diantha had the exact same plan, but hers were more, not so subtle. "Well, well, looks like somebody misses his girlfriend already? Moon, Leon, c'mon let's leave them alone." Like a mother geese and her goslings, Leon and Moon followed Diantha outside. Moon glance shyly between the couple, who were currently hugging each other, she could hear whispers about Steven's initial plan to surprise Cynthia -- after months of not getting to meet each other, and then there were soothing whispers from Cynthia, as they exchanged words of love and passion to each other -- Moon could clearly see the longing looks they made, and how just by their stares and body language told her that they were clearly miserable without the other, words couldn't describe how much they missed each other -- Moon thinks. Her thoughts began to wonder about _'him'_ , the boy she had a crush on -- it had been years, and she still couldn't express her true feelings to the boy she likes -- love-- her chest tightened at the thought of loving him. Moon silently wished that someday, maybe she and _'him'_ could have a loving relationship, just like Cynthia and Steven. 

Before Moon could close the door behind her, Cynthia called her "Moon, _wait--_ " Moon looked at her shyly "Yes?" Cynthia smiled gently at the Alola champion, "Thank you, for looking out for Steven..and Leon." Moon wasn't expecting the taller woman to say that, " _And_ \-- if you want to talk about _anything_ \-- _please_ , don't hesitate to call me, _alright?_ " Cynthia's voice was very soothing, no wonder Steven's face was red almost all the time when Cynthia leaned in to whisper something in his ear -- it must felt like hearing a classical music or something-- It made Moon even more flustered than before. "Ye-yeah, okay." she blurted out, rushing downstairs to meet the other two champions. 

Perhaps, she will call Cynthia sometime-- and talk about _'him'_ , Moon smiled and blushed at the thought, maybe, it wasn't a bad idea after all. Moon would call Cynthia, when she's ready to talk. 


	8. The Advice

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 8! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)
> 
> (Also, tmrw i'm not sure if i can upload a new chapter but i'll try)

Flint stared at the rotom phone placed on the coffee table, glancing around the common room that the Elite four members shared. Bertha wasn't present at the moment, the oldest member had informed the others that she was heading to the professor's lab. Neither of the league members questioned her any further though. Although the buzzing rotom phone was something that hasn't left his mind since he entered the room.

Aaron was playing his game console, beside Lucian -- who was currently reading an enormous book -- it was certainly bigger than his entire head.

"Hey, Flint. I think someone's calling you." Aaron said without looking away from his game console, probably to focused on playing the brand new rhythm game. "It's not mine. Hey, Lucian, i think it's yours." Glancing up, Lucian raised a brow, he fished something out of his pocket, and held up his own rotom phone. 

Flint grumbled at the buzzing sound of the phone call, waiting to be answered by the holder, " _Ugh--_ make it stop. Who's is it anyways--"

Suddenly a thought flashed through Flint's mind, he widened in realization -- Bertha wasn't here, it's neither Lucian's nor Aaron's -- It most definitely isn't his -- Then it must be-- Flint jolted up, as he leaned in as fast a rapidash, he snatched the phone from the table. Lucian shaked his head "You'll get in trouble if you do that, Flint." But, it was all too late, Flint ignored the Psychic type Elite four's warning, and pressed the accept button excitedly, giving Lucian the stink eye while doing so -- it made Lucian scoff and muttered _"Don't say i didn't warn you--"_

Flint was sometimes too stubborn to even listen just once -- sometimes his stubbornness gets him into troubles -- and almost every time, it's either Lucian or Aaron who has to clean up his mess -- Lucian just wished that he would listen to him just this once-- because what Flint was about to do with the Sinnoh champion's phone, was not going to end up well, at all -- Lucian figures. 

Just as Flint accepts the call, he immediately puts the call on speaker, as the other person on the call spoke up first, Lucian massaged his temples, and sighed. Aaron had turned off his phone and turned his attention to the snickering Fire-type Elite four,staring expectantly at Flint -- he was waiting for the shenanigans Flint was about to pull -- Aaron wouldn't normally put up with his pranks and weird stuff he plans -- if anything, he usually prevents any or avoids on getting invited to Flint's shenanigans. But he had to admit-- he was a bit curious. 

_"Hello?"_

Aaron and Flint widened their eyes, while Lucian decided to get back to his book -- seemingly, uninterested in any of the stuff that was happening before him. 

_"Hello, Cynthia? Are you there?"_ The person who was calling was none other than Steven. Lucian gave a last glance at the plotting Flint -- he decided, that he too, would see how this goes, only deciding to keep his ears open, but, still he didn't believe what Flint was doing is okay, though. 

Flint smirked, "Heya, champ!" Steven was probably shocked to hear the gruff cheery voice in contrast to Cynthia's usual soothing voice. The shock was present by Steven's breath sharpening, "Hey, don't you worry, champ. It's me, Flint."

Steven sighed, suddenly feeling a bit relieved at the familiar name. He almost thought of the worst scenarios when he heard Flint's voice. Although he still wondered why Flint was the one answering the call -- and not Cynthia herself. 

_"Ah-- yes, how are you, Flint?"_

" _Aw, shucks,_ i'm flattered that you asked! I'm doing just peachy-- how about you? Man, you must miss little miss perfect, don't you?"

Flint snickered, he puts a hand behind his head and turned to give a funny look to Aaron -- who in turn gave him a look that says "You're unbelievable."

_"Ah-- is she there?"_ Flint glanced around the room -- even though the said woman, wasn't in the room in the first place. 

"Nope, just me and the boys-- _say,_ i heard you're gonna go public with our champ soon. Man, you got guts, i mean-- you and Cynthia are practically celebrities, heck, i think she's dealing with fangirls now."

The last part was a lie, Flint didn't actually know what the Sinnoh champion is doing right now. He did saw her go out of the pokemon league building earlier. But, he didn't saw her since. Why Cynthia went out without her phone was a mystery. Flint would have to ask her that later.   
  
But, right now, he has a plan to get some stuff out of the Hoenn champion's mouth -- getting out the details from the flustered silver-haired man. 

_"Ah- is that so?"_ Flint could hear the worried voice that Steven let out, it almost made him grin in delight -- Flint might not show it, but he considered the Sinnoh champion as his sibling, sure the both of them tend to bicker, but he still respected her and cared for her like a sibling. He's actually pretty giddy when he found out that Cynthia was having a backstreet romance with the Hoenn champion, he teased her a lot after that day. _"And about that, i-- ah, yes. My friend, Wallace had actually booked an interview next week. It'll be private, though. So, it'll probably won't be on the tv or some sort."_

Flint huffed disappointedly, " _Aw, really?_ Then, is it like a written one? Where the interview asks the questions and writes about them in an article sort of way?"

Steven laughed halfheartedly, "Yeah, i suppose. Although i do feel that Cynthia is a little bit skeptical about the whole interview that we'll be doing." Steven was worried about Cynthia -- Flint thinks, scratching his chin, "Well, i'm not one for advices, _but_ , i don't think she's angry at you-- or your friend. I've known her for years, and i think she's just scared-- and worried of the reactions that you guys are gonna get--"

All this time, both Lucian and Aaron was intently listening to the surprisingly, pleasant conversation. This was certainly a rare scene, Flint was actually giving an actual advice, it made Lucian's worries go away -- _"Perhaps, i was worried over nothing.."_ Lucian let out a relieved breath -- that he didn't know he was holding, he smiled a little, all the while listening to their wholesome conversation again. 

"-- _What i'm trying to say is--_ Cynthia's not the best with the press, she avoids it any chance she gets, i kinda get it to be honest- it's scary out there. Not to mention, the fangirls are going a little bit crazy, these days. So, i think, you should talk to her about it, and maybe later when you guys are doing that interview -- try to be there for her -- you know, soothe her or something, i don't know, i never really had a real relationship before." Flint said smiling while playing with one of his pokeball, throwing it into the air over and over again. 

Steven smiled thoughtfully, and laughed _"Thank you, for the advice. I really appreciated it. And i hope you'll find someone, Flint."_

Flint grinned, "Yeah, no problem! And thanks i guess, you're a great man, champ. I can see why she likes you so much--" As the front door of the pokemon league opened, telling them that someone was coming, but, just by hearing the clacking noises -- presumably, heels -- Flint could tell, that it was Cynthia, and he's sure that he'll be roasted if he doesn't hang up soon. 

" _Yeah-- um, i gotta go._ So, you can try calling her again, maybe later? Okay, uh, It's nice talking to you. _See ya, champ!_ " Before Steven could say something, the line broke off, intending that Flint had ended the call. Steven sighed shaking his head, laughing amusingly at the Elite four member. He decided that he will do what Flint adviced him to do, he was actually worried sick that Cynthia might be mad at him, and couldn't sleep just thinking about if Cynthia was secretly angry at him for accepting, even after she tried to assure him, that he made a wise decision, for not agreeing to the interview -- instead he accepted the private interview, which he knew was not far to different from the normal ones on tv -- but, Steven knew her well by now, that his girlfriend didn't want anything to do with the press. Steven would call her later and maybe, visit her to properly talk about the matters in hand.

Putting the rotom phone back on the table, Cynthia came in and sat in the single couch, sighing quietly. "Hey, champ, you okay?" Flint asked, smiling as if nothing happened. Cynthia could only smile back "Yes, it's been hectic, i just finished the errands i was supposed to do."

"Well, calling your boyfriend would be a great distraction." Flint said teasingly, as he jogged towards the door, giving her a last smirk, before leaving. Making Lucian and Aaron snicker, Cynthia oblivious to what just happened, tilted her head and asked "Did i miss something?" Lucian shaked his head and replied " _No,_ it's just Flint, being his usual self." Aaron snorted, _"Yeah, don't worry about it."_ As both men went back to their activities, she couldn't help but frown at the weird atmosphere,

Both reactions from the gentlemen in front of her made Cynthia frown in confusion, _"Oh, well, i suppose it's nothing."_ she thought shrugging, as she went to grab her phone, planning to call Steven and yearning to listen to his calming voice in her room.


	9. The day Wallace booked the interview

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 9! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so, i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)
> 
> (I'm sorry i can't update this fic yesterday, i had something i needed to do)

_"But, Steven-"_

_"No, means no."_

_"Pretty please, for your best friend?"_

For the tenth time that day, Steven sighed, throwing his entire weight backwards, only to be cushioned by the king-sized bed in his room. They were both inside the bedroom provided by the league, as Steven's house was currently surrounded by fangirls and such. 

"My answer is still no, _Wallace_." Wallace grunted, putting a hand to cover his face dramatically, "Oh, c'mon, it's the perfect opportunity! And, i already booked the interview for you too--"

_"You, what--?"_ A voice came from the entrance of Steven's bedroom, the Sootopolis gym leader jumped at the sudden voice, he was aware that the Sinnoh champion was visiting Hoenn, and had been invited by Steven to the Hoenn league, but the sudden change in atmosphere, as Cynthia walked in with two mugs of hot chocolate in hand, he suddenly felt the urge to leave the room. 

The Sinnoh champion's fingers were tightened around the steaming hot mugs, Steven -- noticing his girlfriend's tense expression, sat up and patted the spot next to him, gesturing her to come sit on the bed. Cynthia glared slightly at Wallace as she handed Steven his mug. "You didn't even bother to ask us?" 

Wallace chuckled nervously, _"Well.."_ Steven noticed the tension between the two, scooted over to Cynthia, putting his free hand to hug his girlfriend by the waist gently, trying to calm her down. It looked like it worked, as Cynthia sighed, massaging her temples, " _I'm sorry--_ it's just, y'know how those people tend to deal with these things, especially about Steven's dating rumors." Wallace knew well what Cynthia was implying, the dating rumors about Steven and the 'mystery woman' was still the hot topic among people, especially in the Hoenn region -- since Hoenn is Steven's hometown. Steven nodded, agreeing with Cynthia, dealing with Wallace's antics weren't always fun, it was quite exhausting, both of them had to admit. 

Cynthia leaned her head on Steven's shoulder as the silver haired man added, "And, we're not really the best with interviews or the press. So, i suppose what we're trying to say is--" He trailed, eyes falling to Cynthia's gleaming ones, as she gave him a small smile, that can only be seen from his perpective, "--We will not be going on tv." Wallace gaped at the couple. "End of discussion." The platinum-blonde haired champion added, leaving Wallace flabbergasted.

"B-but, i booked the exclusive interview already!"

"Then, i suppose you'll have to cancel it." Cynthia replied, smiling grimly at Wallace, who in turn pouted at the couple.

"We'll do the private interview instead." Steven said, making Cynthia frown slightly, questioning his sudden decision, Steven smiled apologetically, "It'll be just us and the interviewer. But, at least our face won't be on the internet. We can try to keep it short and clear, i mean-- i know it's a stupid idea, we don't have to do it--"

Cynthia huffed, and gave him a gentle smile, "No, you're right. We can't hide our relationship forever-- we're bound to give a clear announcement to the world somehow, and even if they're against it, i'm sure that we can overcome it, together." 

Steven gave her his dorkiest smile, it always made Cynthia swoon, somehow, "Have i ever told you, that i love you?"

Cynthia chuckled underneath her breath, she looked up, staring at him lovingly, she moved her lips closer to Steven's as she hummed, "Every single day..and, i love you too." Steven closed the gap, as soon as she finished her sentence. 

Unbeknownst to them, Wallace was whistling, turning his entire body to face the wall, suddenly very interested with the rocks that Steven had placed neatly in his room. "Yo, champ, Wallace!" Another voice chimed in, revealing Sidney, the dark-type Elite four.

The two champions broke apart, flustered by the sudden voice appearing. "Well, well, i hope i'm not interrupting anything--" Sidney gave Steven a teasing smirk, as he glanced at Cynthia, who was equally as flustered as Steven. "Oh, and this must be your girlfriend that you've been talking about." Sidney gave her a grin, "Nice to meet 'cha! The name's Sidney." Cynthia raised a brow at the words that Sidney said, she will have to ask Steven about it later. Cynthia smiled politely, as she bowed her head slightly in acknowledgement, "Likewise, i've heard so much about you from the trainers back in my region. I heard you mastered the dark-types, yes?" 

" _Aw_ , thanks champ! Yup, i do, used to train a lot with Steven, back in the days. Y'know Steven didn't really talk much about you, except that he thinks that you're really smart and beautiful--"

_"Okay, that's enough--"_ Steven stuttered, embarrassed by his fellow league member, Cynthia smirked at him, cocking her eyebrow at him playfully, "Does he now?"

"Yeah, and actually, _just yesterday_ , he came to me for help!" Sidney snickered at the Hoenn champion, intrigued, Wallace's ears perked up, "Oh? What's this about needing help from you? Do share with us."

"Our champ here wants some tips on how to--"

_"Alright. That's enough, Sidney."_ Steven grumbled, covering his red face with one of his hands. His reaction made both Wallace and Sidney laugh hysterically at the poor man. _"God, why does his friends have to be so embarrassing_?"

Cynthia pouted, "Well, i guess, it can't be helped. I guess i'll never know."

Steven sighed, turning to his friends, "C-can you guys, leave for a bit? Please? I need a moment alone with Cynthia."

Sidney snorted, grabbing the still hysteric Wallace with him, turning away to exit the room, "Alrighty, it was nice meeting you, Cynthia." with a wave he disappeared behind the closed door. 

Steven took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, _"Cynthia-- i--"_ Before he could say anything, Cynthia kissed his cheek tenderly, cupping his other cheek and caressing it gently, "It's alright if you don't want to tell me." 

Steven shaked his head, averting his eyes from hers, as he continued, "No, it's fine. I wanted to tell you." Cynthia tilted her head, "I went to Sidney, _because_ \-- i don't know how to flirt-- and i wanted his advice.."

Cynthia snorted, covering her mouth with a quivering hand, Steven sighed, "I know-- it's stupid. I know that Sidney's not the best person to ask, but, it's better than Wallace's advice, right?"

 _"Y-you want to know how to flirt..?"_ Cynthia asked frowning slightly, feeling bad that she laughed at him. Steven nodded slowly, "May i ask why?"

Steven let out his breath, " _Because_ , i thought, if i could flirt with you just a bit, maybe, you would like me more--" Steven was cut off by soft lips pressing onto his. 

_"Steven, love. Look at me."_ Cynthia whispered, as they broke apart. Cynthia gave him her sweetest smile-- that she knew Steven loved, and said, "You don't need to flirt with me to make me like you more-- Because, in the end, i'll still love you, no matter what. There's nothing in this world that can make me not love you. You make me happy, _love_. Happier than i have ever been."

Hearing her soothing, loving words, made Steven smile widely -- he was lucky, very very lucky, that he had met Cynthia. -- "I- thank you, _love._ You always know what to say..and _i love you, Cynthia, so much_." Steven kissed her temple, lovingly, Cynthia chuckled in delight, as she whispered, _"I know."_ The couple's words died down, as they embraced one another, the mugs of hot chocolate, has long been forgotten, letting the comforting silence embrace them.

As Sidney leaned on the not so properly closed door, he smiled warmly, "You don't need advices on how to flirt to begin with, champ. The girl seems to love you more than anything." He muttered chuckling at the young couple, before turning away to return to his sleeping chambers. Behind him Wallace poked his shoulders, "Hey, so, are you gonna tell me what the advice was all about, or..?" Sidney brushed him off, "Go back to the gym, Wallace." As he slammed the door to his room on Wallace's pouting face.

_"Rude."_


	10. The Aftermath

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter10! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)
> 
> (This might be the second time i said this, but, i kinda like this chapter, hope u'll like it too, lol)

_It’s official_ — the Sinnoh and Hoenn champion has officially revealed their relationship — the press went crazy when the exclusive private interview was on the front page of the newspapers, and magazines — not to mention the news went viral on the internet— it had spread like wildfire, and it certainly didn’t look like the news are going to die down anytime soon.

  
  


Sure, with the dating scandal that Steven was in had finally been confirmed, that he was dating the Sinnoh champion— they were relieved that they had finally came clean to the public eye and that they won’t have to hide their affection and they will finally have the chance to go on a real public date without having to worry about dating rumors anymore. 

  
  


But, it also meant that they’ll be the talk of the entire region for god knows how long, and the both of them knew that it won’t be too long before they have other pesky interviewers who’re gonna shove down those questions at them— wanting to know more details and such about their relationship. They promised to each other that they would not be accepting anymore unnecessary interviews from various television programs, especially those gossip programs on television— _they always spread the weirdest rumors._

  
  


  
  


There are some perks and downsides, sure, but right now, the both of them just wanted to spend time with each other after a nerve-wrecking interview they did earlier today— the interview had gone surprisingly well, and the person who interviewed them was nothing but polite and supportive of their relationship — Cynthia had to give it to Wallace, she may have underestimated the Sootopolis gym leader. The questions were the general stuff you would ask about certain people who’re in a relationship, like for instance, _“How long have you two been dating?”, “How long have you two known each other?”_ , or even _“Who confessed first?”_. The both of them answered with ease and precise— not wanting to leak any more information about their private dating life, which the interviewer appreciated of course. 

  
  


Currently, they were both residing in Steven’s house, while it is not the best place to be in right now— considering the crowd of fangirls are outside, right now, crowding Steven’s place, but, Steven made sure that he would lock all the doors and windows, and shut all the curtains— he actually had insisted on staying at his place, it was the closest place that they could find, after the interview. 

  
  


Wallace also agreed to help them, with sneaking in snacks and keeping the crowd away from Steven’s house, which the both champions appreciated. 

  
  


And by now, the entire region knew about some of the league members that they were close with were aware of their relationship— Steven and Cynthia couldn’t help but felt bad for them, as they didn’t have any choice but to be chased around— like them— by the press. 

  
  


The league members and their friends merely brushed it off, saying it’s just the usual press, they have dealt with worse cases before. Still, they felt bad, but there’s really nothing they could do, unless— they went out there and made an announcement to not pester with the other league members about their relationship. 

  
  


Steven sighed, as he peaked out from his bedroom window to see the crowd outside seemingly starting to die down. He let out a relieved breath, behind him Cynthia was curled up in his bed, still sleeping — or so he thought, said woman shuffled beneath the duvet, and mumbled, “Mm..Steven—?” Squinting her eyes, as she adjusted to the bright light coming from the morning sun. 

  
  


Cynthia yawned as Steven walked towards her, sitting down and caressing her long tousled hair, _“Cute..”_ he thought as he whispered, “Good morning, did i wake you?” 

  
  


Cynthia sat up slowly, shaking her head as she yawned, “No, i was up from the commotion from outside—“ 

Steven glanced at the windows, then back at her, “Ah— yes, Wallace is dealing with them right now— i did offer my help, but, he told me that perhaps it’s best if we didn’t answer to the crowds demands—“ 

“— I had to give it to Wallace for trying though, perhaps we might want to thank him with something, a dinner maybe?” 

  
  


Cynthia nodded, still drowsy from her deep sleep, “Mm, he’s very nice to do this, i must say. And, well, it’s inevitable. Even if Wallace managed to disperse the crowd now— they will certainly came back another time. But, if i’m being honest—“ 

  
  


Steven scooted closer to her lithe figure, as he kissed her temple, and brushed her bed hair, he waited for the Sinnoh champion to continue, “—I’m quite glad, we came out to the public. It feels...nice, somehow. Even though it’s a nuisance to deal with them, but, i’m sure we’ll be fine eventually, just give them time to process all of this.” Cynthia said smiling up at him, and in turn he smiled back. 

  
  


“Besides, these things— the gossips — they don’t really tend to last, at least that’s what i’ve been noticing. They will eventually get bored of the old news and will run off to some other new rumors and such.” 

  
  


Steven hummed at her words thoughtfully, he touched their temples together, as he opened his mouth to whisper “You never cease to amaze me, _love_. You were always the one who always know what to say, especially in these kind of situations, you’re brilliant, smart, and compassionate. No wonder people admire you so much...as both a trainer, and an individual.” 

  
  


Cynthia kissed his nose tenderly, before replying teasingly, _“Hm, is that how you think of me, Mr. Stone?”_

  
  


Steven chuckled lightly underneath his breath and closed the small distance between them, breaking apart, Cynthia closed her eyes. _“Yes, you’re certainly one of a kind, a diamond in the ruff, i suppose? I admire you so much, love.”_

  
  


Cynthia chuckled, nuzzling his nose, _“Just last week, you were whining on how you can’t flirt— and now you’re making me quite flustered, Steven..”_

  
  


Steven laughed, kissing her again, while they were deeply engrossed in their activity, Wallace decided to barge in, screaming loudly, “Steven—!! I did it! Those pesky interviewers and teenagers are all gone, courtesy of yours tru—“ 

  
  


Both Cynthia and Steven was not having it, deciding to ignore the man, and while they did heard what Wallace told them, they had already been interrupted quite a lot of times already— that they didn’t want to give in to the interruption. Wallace didn’t notice— but Steven had grabbed both his and Cynthia’s partner pokemon’s ball, and had placed them on the table in front of his bedroom. They both had told them that if there are some people who tried to enter the bedroom, without knocking, the both of them can them to go away. 

  
  


Wallace sighed as he closed the door behind him, and shouted teasingly at the couple, “Lock your doors next time, you darn love birds—!!” 

  
  


Wallace waited for a grunt or angry noises, but, what he wasn’t expecting was, Cynthia’s Garchomp poking him in the shoulders, turning around he puts a hand in his mouth, silencing the scream he was about to let out. Garchomp growled at him, putting up both her claws above him, like she was about to attack him or some sort. Garchomp only did this because, she knew from the moment she met this ‘weird guy with a stupidly weird haircut’ that he was scared or intimidated by her presence— and so, she wouldn’t pass this opportunity to scare the man. 

  
  


Wallace flinched as he took in the two pokemon standing in front of him, beside Garchomp was Metagross, the Hoenn champion’s ace pokemon. While the latter wasn’t as hostile, he still made a sound that Wallace could tell, by the slight grumble in his voice — _“Oh..they’re angry.. they’re very very angry—“_

  
  


Wallace inhaled and dashed downstairs, leaving the quiet steel-type to turn his attention to Garchomp, letting out a cry, that would mean, _“Y’know, master only told us to get him away from the bedroom for now, right?”_

  
  


Garchomp glanced back at the steel-type and scoffed, _“So? We did as told, didn’t we?”_

  
  


_“I’m sure, that they didn’t literally meant— scaring him.”_ Metagross replied, earning another scoff from the taller pokemon. 

_“Hmph. Well, it doesn’t really matter now. Let’s go—“_ Garchomp grumbled to Metagross, gesturing to the pokeballs on top of the table. 

  
  


_“Okay.”_ Metagross rumbled as the both of them touched their pokeballs and returned themselves for the day. Both intending to leave their partners to share a moment alone once again. 


	11. The Interview

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 11! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)
> 
> (i rlly enjoyed writing this one, i hope u will enjoy reading it as well!)
> 
> \- Also, in this fic, the interviewer's name is actually based off the trainer class (The interviewer) from the Hoenn games, her name in the games is Gabby (Yes, i researched it just for this chapter). And yes, the interviewer from the Hoenn and Sinnoh games are different -- well, at least their names are different.

Today was the day. The day Steven and Cynthia would finally be able to escape the tortures of hiding their romance. It had been 7 months of misery for both champions. Although they had to admit, it wasn’t as exciting as they thought it would be, sure they were ready to get the interview over with. But, now, they were very nervous and scared that they would somehow mess things up. 

And right now, they were sitting nervously for the interviewers to arrive at their house. The interview, was in a sense — quite private — Wallace had informed them that they were going to be interviewed privately, but he didn’t mention that the actual interviewer would go inside Steven’s house and ask the questions in his home. 

  
  


Of course, Steven didn’t really mind, that actually meant less crowds, but it was still quite nerve-wrecking. Especially, since they didn’t know that they were going to interview the Sinnoh champion herself. 

  
  


As the doorbell rang, Steven stood up quite quickly, and said “I’ll go get it.” 

  
  


Cynthia could only finger with her coat, trying very hard to calm herself down. It was quite easy for her, but not that easy for her partner— Steven was probably ranked the third calmest, if they were talking about who was the most composed out of the champions— Red being the first, and herself the second — but just when he got up just now, she could tell that it wasn’t him who was going to calm her down— it was the opposite— and she didn’t mind it one bit, and bonus points, because she thought that when he’s nervous about something it actually made him look adorable — yes, she knows that she’s quite horrible to think that, but Cynthia couldn’t resist that face. 

  
  


As Cynthia poured herself a cup of steaming tea, that she made earlier. Cynthia could hear murmurs of awe being voiced by what she figured, the person who was going to interview them. 

  
  


Cynthia silently hoped that this person doesn’t turn out to be one of _‘those’_ people. Just thinking of it made her shiver in fear and slight disgust. Cynthia took a deep breath and let it out slowly, as she muttered to herself, _"I can do this. This is fine, i've done these things before, i just need to stay calm."_

  
  


_“—i must say, Mr. Stone, you’re house is very well decorated and organized!”_

  
  


_“Ah— yes, i’m glad you liked it. Actually, my father designed this house— you’ll have to give him all the credit..i just decorate it with my personal hobbies— and please, call me Steven.”_

  
  


“Mmhm! Incredible! I’ve never seen anything like it—!” 

  
  


As the footsteps entered the living room, Cynthia turned her head and, stood up, politely greeting the guest— she smiled and spoke up, bowing slightly, “Hello, you must be the one who’ll be interviewing us, _yes—_?” 

  
  


  
  


The woman froze when she turned to meet the Sinnoh champion’s alluring gaze. For a while Cynthia felt tense, as she thought the worse things, as the woman could only gaze at Cynthia with a stricken expression. Steven took this chance to stand by Cynthia’s side, gently tugging her waist closer, holding her. 

  
  


“Gabby, let me formally introduce you too my girlfriend-- this is Cynthia, i’m sure you’ve seen her before—“ 

The short-haired woman could only nod slowly, as she was still trying to take in what she’s seeing. The Hoenn champion’s _‘mystery woman’_ was the Sinnoh champion. Gabby had to pinch herself for not imagining things, but as she pinched herself a few times— the elusive Cynthia was still standing there, in the arms of Steven. Gabby was glad that she didn’t bring her co-worker, Oli the cameraman with her, or else the footage would certainly be a chaos, as Gabby — for the first time in her carrier— didn’t know what to say or do. 

  
  


“ _Hello_ , it’s nice to finally meet you— _Um_ — is everything alright—?” Cynthia questioned worriedly, Gabby could only nod in return, and stuttered, _“Y-yes! I’m fantastic—!”_ Gabby winced at her strained pitched voice, gripping her pencil and notebook tightly. 

  
  


“Please, sit.” Steven gestured at the couch in front of them. Gabby nodded again, she huffed as her words started forming again, “I-i..um— i’m sorry, it’s just—“ 

  
  


“Perhaps, you need a drink first?” Cynthia asked smiling gently at the interviewer, leaning in to pour a cup of hot tea for their guest. Gabby watched her pour the tea in awe, studying the Sinnoh champion’s feature, _“Wow— i know she’s beautiful from what i’ve heard, and i’ve seen her when she comes up on television and the internet, but— arceus, this woman was even more beautiful up close. How could somebody be so—“_

  
  


“Here you are— _please,_ enjoy. I’ve picked the finest tea-leaves from back in my hometown. They are especially very good for calming your nerves.” As Cynthia handed the cup of tea to her, she took it steadily, trying not to spill it. 

  
  


And she was right, just by smelling the tea made her somewhat less nervous. Before sipping on the tea however, she decided to explain and introduce herself. 

  
  


“I feel, that i’ve been rude to the both of you— i apologize if i’m intruding, and— it’s definitely a great pleasure to finally be able to meet you, Ms. Cynthia—“ 

  
  


Cynthia chuckled, “Ah— no, please it’s quite alright— it seems that we’re not the only ones that are nervous. And please, don’t hesitate to call me Cynthia.” 

  
  


Steven nodded beside her, hand still wrapped onto Cynthia’s waist. “I was certainly quite glad when i heard that you’re the one that Wallace booked.”

  
  


Gabby felt more reassured after hearing those words, she gave them her usual cheerful smile, _“Of course—!”_

  
  


“And i’m surprised that you two are also nervous— in my years of doing this job, i was never this nervous— almost not once even! Again, it’s an honor to be the ones who’re gonna interview you two lovely couple—! Oh, have i mentioned that you two are perfect for each other?!” 

  
  


Cynthia and Steven chuckled at the sudden enthusiasm, thanking her as Steven gave her a smile, “Well, then, should we start—?” 

  
  


“Yes! Of course—! Before we do, though. I’ve told my boss that i’ll only be asking the general questions, so, don’t you worry!” 

  
  


Smiling at the sweet gesture, Cynthia raised a brow, “Thank you. That’s much appreciated..” 

  
  


_“Alright—!”_

  
  


“ _First,_ i would like to write an opening for the newspaper— would you two want a more mysterious approach first or— the direct approach..?” Gabby asked glancing at the two champions. 

  
  


Steven hummed, “I’m sure people would be more captivated by the...mysterious approach?” 

  
  


Gabby nodded agreeing, “ _Mm,_ good call.” 

  
  


  
  


“Okay, first question—! When and how did you two met?” 

  
  


“Ah, that would be 4 years ago, when Cynthia was declared as the newest champion of Sinnoh, and all the other league members were invited to the tournament and celebration. But, i actually met her formally on the first annual champion meetings.” Steven answered with ease, remembering the days they first met. 

  
  


Gabby smiled as she wrote the answers with skill, “And, how did you react when she won the title of champion—?”

  
  


“ _Ah—_ i was very amazed by how well she cooperated with her team members, she was by any sense, an incredible tactician and trainer. Her concentration didn’t seem to waver a bit, i was certain, that she would go places— and went to different places she did..” Cynthia hid her smile behind the tea-cup. 

  
  


Gabby almost squealed at the two, before returning her attention back to her list. “Next is, what was your first impression of each other?” 

  
  


Cynthia answered first this time, “I used to admire him, as a trainer, back when i used to collect gym-badges. And i remember wanting to battle him, for quite awhile, before deciding to just give up on the dream—“ 

  
  


_“—and did you..?”_

  
  


Cynthia smiled lightly, “No. But, i did eventually battle him, when i was deemed champion.”

  
  


Steven laughed breathlessly, “And i wasn’t wrong, you’re very incredible and powerful.” 

  
  


“Who won?” Gabby leaned in, eyes widened in curiosity. 

  
  


“It was a tie.” Steven replied, getting a questioning look from the woman beside him, “ _Oh..?_ But i remember quite vaguely that you were quite struggling, before our pokemon’s final blow, though? Or perhaps i remembered it differently..?” Cynthia hid her coy smile behind the tea-cup once again, earning an amused laugh from Steven. 

  
  


“And i did, i had to admit.” Cynthia smiled in triumph, as Steven added, “As for my impression of Cynthia— I’ve told you earlier, that i met her at the Sinnoh champion tournament, when it was her turn to battle the previous reigning champion, i was quite amazed by her never ending elegance in battling, and it’s quite embarrassing to say this but— i thought that she was quite alluring..” 

  
  


Cynthia cocked her head at him playfully, as if trying to get more words from his mouth, chuckling amusedly, he continued, “It was like i’m entranced by her presence.. _ah- sorry, i’m rambling again—_ “ 

  
  


“No, no. That was perfect! I already got all of your impressions of her!” 

  
  


Cynthia nudged him, giving him a small smile. Turns out this interview is going better than expected, Steven thought, as he turned to look at Cynthia -- all their worries seem to disappear once they answered with ease and truthfully, he was about to return her smile when Gabby asked another question. 

  
  


“How long have you two been in this secret rendezvous together?” 

  
  


“This month will be the 7th.” 

  
  


Gabby gaped at the answer that left Steven’s mouth, _“That’s— very unexpected..but, how?”_

  
  


“Well..it included many secret dates and meeting places— with help from our friends for the last month.” Steven added, staring into Cynthia’s eyes. 

  
  


“Fascinating—! Does your _‘friends’_ mean, the league members, perchance?” 

  
  


Cynthia nodded at Gabby, “Our families, too.” 

  
  


“Long distances must be hard, but how did you two overcome it?” Gabby wondered, placing her pencil underneath her chin. 

  
  


Cynthia simply smiled, “Well, it was never easy to begin with...living in separate regions— especially, since the both of us had duties to attend to— it wasn’t pleasant, being apart from your loved ones for a long amount of time, yes. But, we believe that, if two people love each other from the bottom of their hearts—“ 

Cynthia’s words trailed, gazing at her boyfriend, eyes seemingly not wanting to leave anytime soon. 

  
  


“—it will somehow and someway work out.” Steven added Cynthia’s sentence, getting a happy grin from Gabby. 

  
  


  
  


“Following up that question is, when was your first date? And who approached the other first?” 

  
  


“Well, if we’re talking about who initiated the conversation first, it was Cynthia. But, i was the one who asked her to a date. If i remember correctly— it was on last year’s Christmas party at Galar, that i decided to ask her on a date.” 

  
  


Cynthia gave a weak laugh and hummed, “You were quite a sight back then, flustered and all. If i didn’t know you were interested in me, i wouldn’t have knew you were blushing—“ 

  
  


Steven grumbled at the reply, he huffed _“Please, do not remind me...”_

  
  


Cynthia gave him a teasing smile, “And, i didn’t remember me initiating any conversations between us—“ 

  
  


“Well, you mostly did, _love._ ” Steven pouted slightly at his girlfriend

  
  


_“Hm? Did i really?”_ Cynthia hummed patting her lover’s knees, their playful banter was quite a sight to behold. Never did Gabby thought that the Sinnoh and Hoenn champion that people feared were actually pretty laid-back and playful in contrast to their usual composed demeanor. 

  
  


_“Ah— sorry, that we got off track a bit—“_

  
  


Gabby shaked her head, waving her hands frantically, “Oh, no, it’s fine! I actually have one more question left— are you ready?” 

  
  


Both champions nodded firmly, making the short-haired woman smile, she inhaled deeply before blurting out the last question, “Who confessed first?” 

  
  


The question made him flustered, but he answered anyways, _“I-i did...”_

  
  


Cynthia intertwined their hands together, leaning closer to her lover’s embrace. 

“When he did, i must say i wasn’t expecting a heartfelt confession— but, that day...was the day i realized that— love is a very mysterious emotion, it comes to you unexpectedly— without thinking too much, i accepted. Perhaps, it’s because, for the longest time, i never had these kind of feelings before— and that they’re waiting to be released. It made me very happy to share that feeling with someone..” 

  
  


“It might took us a long time to realize that we had strong feelings for each other— but, here we are— still standing beside one another— we would be lying if there were no obstacles between us — or any other mishaps— but, in the end— we found each other once again, and we certainly didn’t regret hiding our relationship for 7 whole months. Because, i think we deserve time— to spend with each other without being bothered— after we finally realized our feelings for each other.” 

  
  


Cynthia, feeling quite bold — and she certainly didn’t care enough, as there were no cameras around them — she pecked Steven’s cheek, caressing their intertwined hands as he finished. Steven leaned in as he whispered loving words to her. 

  
  


Gabby smiled as she averted her eyes from them to the filled notebook that she brought. Placing her pencil and notebook inside her bag, she stood up, glancing at her watch on her wrist, she bowed politely, announcing her retreat.

  
  


Steven had showed her the way out, to which she accepted, considering she might get lost around the halls of Steven’s house. 

  
  


  
  


As she stepped outside, looking up at the bright morning sky, she smiled gleefully, _“They are certainly a perfect fit for each other. I wish you two the best of luck with your relationship—! Ah..i can't wait to start writing on this article!!"_ As Gabby walked away from Steven’s house, the sun shined brightly at her, following her every step. 

  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  



	12. The Memories

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 12! sorry that i didn't update yesterday, but here is a chap now, please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)

It was on a lazy Friday afternoon, when Steven’s thoughts began to wander over the memories he had with Cynthia. 

  
  


After the interview that they had last month, it made going on trips and dates more easier for the both of them. Meeting each other without the fear of getting caught by people was a certainly blissful feeling. Over the month that they announced the shocking news, the press and crowd had finally died down— sure, there are still probably a few people out there, who are still very curious about their relationship, but they really couldn’t care less, because it was their private life— and no one should interfere with it. 

  
  


It was the week, where Cynthia would visit him in Hoenn, and Steven couldn’t feel more excited to finally see her again. Steven had prepared their favorite wine, movie, and bought some takeouts from a nearby local restaurant. He was needless to say, very looking forward to their silent afternoon. 

  
  


Steven hummed as he plopped down onto the couch, as he remembered back when Cynthia had first started to make a conversation with him, she was so very innocent back then— giving him a shy smile, nowadays she would give him teasing and confident ones. Steven couldn’t forget how flustered he was when Cynthia came up to him. He was actually pretty scared that he would go on and scare or weirded her out with his endless ramblings about his hobbies for rocks and fossils. 

  
  


But, what shocked him was that, Cynthia actually appreciated and was seemingly very interested in his hobbies. Which made the Hoenn champion even more flustered, than he already was back then. 

  
  


Steven shaked his head, as his thoughts began to wonder again— this time to where he finally decided to man up and asked her to dinner, at the Christmas party the Galar region held. At first, he got a surprised gaze from the woman, but then her gaze turned into a soft one, smiling with grace she accepted the invitation. 

  
  


They had ditched the party and went to a fancy restaurant that was too fancy for their liking— Steven had known that this restaurant was quite fancy from what he heard from Wallace, but he didn’t expect that it was that fancy— The food was certainly not the best for their price, although at first, Cynthia didn’t have the heart to tell him that— but she did teasingly insisted that she would be more than fine if they went to local restaurants for dinner and such. Leaving the Hoenn champion flustered again, but that would mean he had the chance to take her out on a date again, he thought back then. 

  
  


  
  


The second time they went on a date wasn’t what they were expecting. The both of them had coincidentally met in Unova, at Twist mountain. Steven told her that he was there for rare stones and fossils that could be only found in the Unova region. While, Cynthia herself was on her way to do her own research at Twist mountain. Then, the latter had the idea to inspect the mysterious tower together, all the while trying to conceal their growing feelings for each other. 

  
  


Then, on their third date— it had happened out of the blue, Cynthia had just finished with her paperwork, when the Hoenn champion called her and had nervously asked her to be his ‘tour guide’ — Cynthia teased him relentlessly, for that, as Cynthia perked up and agreed to meet him at Canalave city’s library. The two, then ended up sleeping in each other’s arms in a secluded area near the Canalave rivers, hidden from prying eyes. 

  
  


  
  


Of course, Steven remembered vividly— how he woke up to a sweet rose scent seeping through his nasal cavities, glancing at the flowing golden hair on his shoulders, book on her lap, he had panicked a bit— worrying that she might get angry or disgusted at him or something — but his thoughts disappeared as the sleeping beauty rises from her sleep, apologizing quickly as she turned away and told him that she was late for a match. Leaving him to ponder with his thoughts as he had — for the first time in his life— felt that something was definitely wrong with the tightening of his chest. 

  
  


The dates after that were just as sweet and innocent. They hadn’t noticed that they’ve been dancing around each other for months. Concealing their strong feelings for each other— as one day, they both decided to meet up once again, this time at a more secluded place behind the waterfalls of the entrance to the Sinnoh league. 

  
  


Not many people knew about this place— only the champion, and the Elite four members knew about it. Cynthia had told him that it was some kind of secret base for when the league members needed some privacy — or in Flint’s case, crying silently about his love life, Cynthia had informed him, to which he promised to seal from getting the secret out of his mouth. 

  
  


Steven was amazed at the small secret base the Sinnoh league had build. It was small and simple— but, it somewhat symbolizes their interests and such — like, for Lucian, there are some books that he left in a labeled box, in the other pile were Aaron’s secret instruments, some tea — it was either Cynthia’s or Bertha’s or it could be both, lastly, there were Flint’s unusually unique things — they were pretty random. 

  
  


There was a couch, big enough for two to three people. As they sat there, listening to the sound of gushing waterfall, for what it seems like a few minutes, before the both of them spoke up. Laughing at each other, Cynthia let Steven spoke first. 

  
  


Steven shivered as he remembered the tension he felt back at the secret base. 

  
  


  
  


Steven rambled a few things to her before getting to the point where he started to let out his concealed feelings for her. It had been a moment, before Cynthia held his hand gently, and leaned in to whisper her actual feelings for him. He couldn’t help but notice how her usually composed expression turned to a cute flustered one like a blushing high-school teenager in love— and in love they were, neither were ready to say the words, yet. But, at that moment, they were the happiest people in the world— as they shared a timid but passionate kiss. Both had thought— 

_“This is nice. Maybe, someday— i’ll say those words to you..”_

  
  


It was a couple months later, before they said those words— Cynthia had accidentally slipped out those words that Steven was longing for— to be filled with joy, that his lover was feeling the exact same way that he does. It had been a long day for the both of them, so, to hear those words came out of her mouth, was the best feeling he ever felt— as he kissed her tenderly, brushing her hair, he whispered those loving words that made the beauty smile in adoration. 

  
  


Oh, how Steven missed those days where they were still innocent— and yet, until now, both of their feelings stayed the same— on the contrary they grew even stronger and they’ve been closer than ever. 

  
  


If past Steven would tell to himself that he wouldn’t have gotten himself a love interest— well, he’s future— or— present self would told him the opposite.

  
  


Sometimes, he felt like he doesn’t deserve Cynthia’s love and affection— as he felt like she would do much better than him__ but all his worries seemed to wash away, as the golden haired woman hushed him and told Steven that she loves him no matter what happens. Because, he was her first love and she was his. It seemed to perfect to be true— Steven had thought multiple times, but, then, he remembered that the woman he loved, loved him just as much. 

  
  


He also remembered their first time holding hands. _Yes, that’s right_ — even when they had started to date— Steven had a hard time trying to be bold and would always back away before he even got close to touching her hands— they looked soft and very inviting, he figured. 

  
  


  
  


Cynthia did notice however, how he kept glancing at their hands as if she was waiting for him to make a move. She didn’t blame him to be honest, she too— was just unexperienced as him, but, she had read quite a decent amount of romance books— some, that Lucian recommended to her. Those books tend to be cheesy— that doesn’t mean she’s not fond of the genre, she has a secret soft spot for romance books. But, she was determined to give him a little push— by, purposefully brushing her hand against his. Which Cynthia had noticed his slightly hitched breath. She smiled, as she continued to tease him, until one day he gently tugged her hand towards his, and interwined them, that sudden bold move had made the Sinnoh champion quite flustered.

  
  


  
  


Steven chuckled at the memory, as he had not heard the front door opened and steady footsteps came towards him. 

  
  


As the footsteps grew closer, the person giggled and hugged their hands around Steven’s neck, making him flinch in surprise. 

  
  


_“Hey, i missed you—“_

  
  


Steven sighed softly at the gentle voice that came up from behind him, as he turned slowly to meet her lips. 

  
  


  
  


As they broke apart, Steven whispered back, “I miss you too— did Metagross let you in?” Referring to his steel-type partner. 

  
  


Cynthia nodded smiling with concern she asked, “You looked like you were in deep thought earlier...you okay?” Plopping down next to him, Steven instinctively puts an arm around her back, as he kissed her temple. 

  
  


“No, no, there’s nothing to be worried about. I was just reminiscing about our times together, back when we’re still getting to know each other, that’s all.” 

  
  


Cynthia hummed, concern lifted off of her face, as she closed her eyes, “Care to elaborate, _love?_ ”

  
  


“ _Hm_..i was just thinking about the first time we hold hands.” 

  
  


Cynthia hummed again, “ _Ah_ , yes. You were quite adorable back then, i had to take a little action, to get you to finally hold my hand— i almost thought you don’t like physical touch— but, look at you now...” she chuckled teasingly, peeking from one of her close eyes, to glance at his expression. 

  
  


Cynthia loved it when Steven got all flustered in front of her, she thought it was adorable. Oh, and don’t get her started on that dorky smile of his— Cynthia could go on and on talking about his lovely smile. 

  
  


Steven chuckled, “You always know how to tease me, now do you?” 

  
  


Cynthia smiled up at him, _“Well, i do enjoy doing it..”_

  
  


Steven laughed heartedly, and said, “Well, you must had a long day— i got us our favorite for dinner—“ 

  
  


Cynthia perked up and kissed him on the cheeks repeatedly, murmuring, “ _Mm—_ that’s perfect, thank you _love_.” 

  
  


_“My pleasure, love.”_

  
  


As the sun sets, the both champions ate with silence, as they ended up in each other’s arms once again. 

  
  



	13. The Time of the Month

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 13! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)
> 
> (Also, my stomach is killing me, i think it's bcuz of the weird food i ate earlier)

Garchomp gave a heavy sigh for the third time that day. As the dragon-type peered over her sulking trainer, staring blankly at her. 

  
  


The both of them had been in the same position for a good 10 minutes now. Garchomp carefully studied her partner’s movements, as she gently poked her trainer’s legs— earning a stifled laugh from the blonde woman. 

  
  


Cynthia’s currently lying flat on her stomach, hands holding a pillow to cover her ears, toes curling slightly, as she groaned again— making her Garchomp anxious and worried again. 

  
  


It was that time of the month. Usually it wasn’t as bad for Cynthia— as she would just have sore backs and light headaches, and she would just ignore them, by taking painkillers her grandmother made for her. 

  
  


But this time however, was more painful than the other times she’s went on her period. She had made sure to take her painkillers, but it wasn’t working at all— and Cynthia had taken quite a few than she usually needed to, it made her groan in annoyance and pain. 

  
  


Thankfully for Cynthia, it was her day off, as there were no challengers at the moment— and it wasn’t league season until another month, Cynthia was quite grateful for that— although, her cowering in her bedroom isn’t an ideal place she would be on her day off, but who was she to complain— it was _very painful_ , to the point where she would feel sore all over her body— especially the lower parts— and just trying to stand almost made her faint and her head feels like its going to burst any second. 

  
  


The morning when Cynthia found out the blood that spreaded through her bedsheets made her sulk as she found out that she couldn’t make it to her lunch date with Steven. Usually, if it wasn’t as painful, she would try to be there— as she told herself that, meeting her handsome and sweet dorky boyfriend made her pains go away— this wasn’t the case today, however. 

  
  


Cynthia couldn’t even get out of her bed without help from her pokemon— mainly, Garchomp. Out of all her pokemon, Garchomp had always been the one to help her with these types of stuff, she’s also the only one who can carry Cynthia’s bodyweight well enough to get her to the bathroom quickly. Cynthia was very grateful for having a pokemon that is willing to help her in these trying times. 

  
  


Garchomp doesn’t understand the concept of periods, however— but, she indulges to help Cynthia anyways. Just by looking and hearing her trainer groan and wince, she could tell that she was in deep pain— and she wasn’t about to let her trainer be— she would help in anyway she can, even though she doesn’t know how painful it can be. 

  
  


Garchomp had brought her some tea and biscuits from the kitchen— with the help of Lucario and Roserade— Cynthia thanked them for the help, wishing she could hug and play with them outside. But, alas, she couldn’t, as she groaned once again and changed her position— clutching her pillow to her abdomen, letting out a heavy breath, she closed her eyes, head swimming. 

  
  


Garchomp gave her a worried cry, as she poked Cynthia gently on the back, as if she was asking, _“Are you okay..? You’ve been groaning and wincing for a couple hours now—“_

  
  


Cynthia tried to smile through the pain, as she slowly turned to face her dragon-type partner, groaning as she felt her stomach churn again. 

  
  


Cynthia held out a hand to Garchomp’s lowered head, as if trying her best to pet it, she muttered, “I’ll be fine, Garchomp— the pain will go away sooner or later...” wincing at the sudden rush of pain, she clutched the pillow tighter to her stomach, almost crushing it to her mid-riff. 

  
  


Garchomp frowned, and nuzzled her trainer’s neck and hair, cooing as if she’s asking, _“I’m sorry, that i’m not helping much— i wish i knew the pain you’re going through...”_

  
  


Cynthia gasped, causing Garchomp to widen her eyes, grunting a few times, _“Wh-what? Is something wrong?! Do you need help..?”_

  
  


Cynthia as if understanding her partner, muttered, “Garchomp, c-can you— get my painkillers for me— and water, please..” At Cynthia’s request, Garchomp quickly turned to her bedside table, and scanned the area— looking for the thing Cynthia asked her to find. 

  
  


As Garchomp held it gently between her wings, she gave the painkillers first, then, the glass of water. Helping her trainer sit— by offering her tail for her back support. Cynthia gave her a small smile, and whispered “Thank you.” 

  
  


Putting the empty glass of water back on the table, Garchomp perked up, as the tall pokemon heard noises coming from outside Cynthia’s house. 

  
  


“The doorbell— who is it..?” Cynthia scrunched her face with pain, trying to get up from her bed, Garchomp held her in place, before Cynthia could even swing her legs down on the floor. 

  
  


  
  


Garchomp let out a couple grunts at Cynthia, gesturing at the door, as if telling the woman that she would be the one who’ll answer the door. Cynthia felt a little bit worried— as the dragon-type could be a little bit...how should she say— protective. Which was, at times— good— but, sometimes, it could mean bad news for the one who made her Garchomp angry or annoyed. Cynthia just hoped that, whoever is outside right now, wouldn’t be Garchomp’s dinner for tonight. It wouldn’t be pleasant, _now would it?_

  
  


Garchomp went ahead and opened the door carefully with her claws, trying her best not to groan in annoyance. 

  
  


As looked down to the person who knocked on their door, Garchomp scoffed— recognizing the weird man with silver hair, _“Ah— it’s you again.”_

  
  


Steven scratched his neck in confusion, as he acknowledged the taller pokemon, “Garchomp.” He smiled at her, trying to be friendly to the dragon-type— not appearing to be intimidated by the slightest. 

  
  


Garchomp almost snarled in annoyance— of all the people and pokemon— excluding her own trainer and relatives— Steven was the one who wasn’t even intimidated by her cold appearance, even when she tried to be scary— he would just smile at her, making her growl in confusion. 

  
  


But, nevertheless, she returned the gesture by giving a steady nod to him, and backed off slightly, gesturing her head and pointing to where he figured Cynthia was currently at. He gave Garchomp another smile and said, “Thank you.” As he let himself in, the dragon closed the door slowly. 

  
  


Steven walked towards Cynthia’s room, before he went in, however— he could hear groans of pain and wincing from outside of the room. Making him frown worriedly, glancing at Garchomp— who also appeared anxious, as if she’s trying to tell him to help her trainer. 

  
  


Steven had brought some comfort food in his backpack, when he heard that Cynthia couldn’t make it to their lunch date— she had texted him earlier, saying she was having girl problems, this time worse, it had made him frown and he decided today he would try and take care of his girlfriend. 

  
  


So here he was, turning the knob of Cynthia’s bedroom, he opened the door quietly, and stepped inside with Garchomp. 

  
  


Cynthia’s eyes were currently closed shut, her hand covering her eyes, while the other hand was still clutching a pillow on her abdomen. 

  
  


_“Ngh, Garchomp..? Who is it?”_ As Garchomp walked closer to her trainer, she gestured Steven to come check on her. 

  
  


Steven did as told and grabbed a chair, placing it beside Cynthia.

  
  


As he went ahead and kissed her temple, brushing her hair out of her face.

_“Hey, love, how are you feeling?”_

  
  


Cynthia opened her eyes momentarily, staring at Steven shockingly, _“What—? Steven..?”_ Cynthia groaned.

  
  


Steven gave her a smile, “I was worried so i flew here as fast as i can— are you hungry?” He asked her with a lowered voice. 

  
  


Cynthia winced, “I am— but, what about your work—?” 

  
  


Steven shushed her as he gave her temple another kiss, he went ahead and rummaged through his backpack. Cynthia promptly sat up with a wince, she tilted her head, “What are you looking for..?” 

  
  


As Steven pulled out a brown bag, he grinned at her, “I know we can’t eat lunch together...and you’ve been craving these lately— so, i decided to get you some on the way here—“ Steven grabbed something from his bag again, as Cynthia took the fast food take-out she had been craving. 

  
  


Gawking at Steven she stared at him, as he gave her a bag of several chocolate bars. “Ah, i’ve heard that dark chocolate helps with the pain—“ 

  
  


He stifled a gasp, as Cynthia gave him a quick peck on the lips, causing him to blush for a moment, before smiling at Cynthia’s lightened up mood. 

  
  


“This is wonderful, thank you, _my love_.” 

Steven gave her a dorky smile, before replying, “I also got you—“ 

  
  


“There’s more?” Cynthia perked up, as she munched quietly on the fries. 

  
  


Steven gave her a bag of what it seems to be pads and tampons. 

  
  


Steven scratched his neck nervously, slowly studying Cynthia’s expression, before saying, “I— ah, didn’t know which one you would prefer— so, i bought—“ 

  
  


“—you bought the entire selection of these things..?” Cynthia grabbed one of them and stared at it. Face unreadable. 

  
  


Steven sighed in defeat, _“Yes...”_

  
  


Cynthia tried to stifle her laugh but couldn’t, as the Hoenn champion laughed with her. As Cynthia’s laughter began go die down, she opened her burger and smiled warmly at him, “Thank you, again, for all of these. You’re very sweet and thoughtful, _love._..sometimes, _too thoughtful—_ “ as she gave him a light chuckle. Garchomp gave a sigh in relief as she witnessed the two reuniting, she’s glad that the weird man with silver hair came, or else she wouldn’t have known what to do. So, she gave her trainer a small cry, telling her that she’s going back to her pokeball to give them some privacy. 

  
  


Before she went inside, her trainer, called out to her, “Thank you for helping me, Garchomp— i’m sorry i couldn’t take you out to the park today..” 

  
  


Garchomp gave her partner an understanding grumble, and what it seems to be a smile— Steven observed, _“It’s alright, you’re health is more important than some lame park. I do hope you'll feel better soon." Garchomp gave her a lingering gaze before turning her back._

  
  


Cynthia smiled at her precious partner, as her Garchomp went inside her pokeball, leaving the two to themselves.

  
  


Earning a chuckle from him, he brushed her hair lovingly, while the blonde keeps on munching on her food— pain seemingly forgotten once Steven’s here, of course the food had helped, her hunger was not a problem anymore, although her stomach and headache is still killing her. 

  
  


“How are you feeling now..?” 

  
  


Cynthia simply smiled and leaned her head next to his, “I’m feeling a bit better, still painful— but, better, now that you’re here.”

  
  


“I’m glad to hear that, i love you.”

  
  


Cynthia gave a happy content hum, “I love you too.” Words cannot express how grateful and happy Cynthia was, right now. As both of them sat next to each other on her bed, eating quietly without any words left to say.


	14. The Photoshoot

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 14! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)

The Annual League photoshoot is finally here. The members of the league, gym leaders; kahunas; trial captains; Elite fours; and the champions of each region are all invited for a photo-op. It is categorized of course— from the Gym leaders first to the champions. They couldn’t all fit in one picture, so they had to divide them into divisions of their rankings and regions. 

  
  


The gym leaders’ photoshoot were all done two days before the champions are called in— this years’ photoshoot location will be located in the Galar region— and this years’ theme is medieval— which the Galar region is particularly famous in, as they have got the perfect locations to shoot at. Today was the champions’ turn. 

  
  


All of the champions have arrived safely, and was greeted by the Galar champion himself. 

  
  


The first ones to arrive was Red and Lance. The both of them got ushered to their own trailers, something about touching their faces for the shoot or something, Lance had panicked a bit, as he gave the unbeatable champion a panicked stare, Leon laughed and waved at him, “Don’t you worry, dude! You’ll feel fabulous after they put on some makeup on you!!” 

  
  


“Hey, Leon!” Leon turned around at the voice, as he grinned at the next person that arrived. The third to arrive was the Alola champion. 

  
  


Moon smiled as she looked around in awe— the building was like a castle, Moon had a hunch that this was actually a real-life castle, probably turned into a tourist attraction by now. 

  
  


“You like it?” Leon gestured at the castle, as Moon continued to smile in awe, “Yeah..this place is even more amazing than i thought it’ll be— _i mean,_ i’ve seen them in guide books and documentaries, but this is just— wow, it’s incredible..” 

  
  


Leon smiled at her, proud to call Galar his home, he lightened up as he suddenly got an idea. “Oh! Hey, how do you feel about me giving you a personal tour around this place? We can invite the others, whaddya say?” 

  
  


Moon’s eyes shined at the idea, “Really?” Leon nodded vigorously “Yup! We can go tomorrow—“ 

  
  


His words got cut off by a couple of makeup artists and beauticians heading towards Moon, and signaling her to her trailer. 

  
  


Moon seemed a bit more— composed— than Lance. Leon stifled a laugh as he waved her off. 

  
  


  
  


Soon, all of the champions were all being ushered in their own costumes. 

  
  


The trailers began to open one by one. As Leon came out first— his costume resembles that of a king, with his usual signature hat, switched to a real crown; his long hair was styled back and braided; the front of his royal uniform covered by big white ruffles— to represent his rank? Leon figures. Red’s face was covered by what it looks like a knight’s helmet, used for battle in the earlier eras— it looked suffocating, as his eyes were the only one visible and nothing else. On his arm he held a ‘longsword’ that looked more like the real thing, then just a usual prop. 

  
  


“The stylists were going all out on this, huh.” Leon thought, scratching his itchy beard. 

  
  


Lance came out sulking, toying with his robe— Lance’s appearance wasn’t as different from his usual one, having his robe modified with more fur, his spiky hair was slicked back with a gel. His forehead now very visible to the public eye. 

  
  


Snorting Moon staggered next to Leon, holding his shoulders, as Leon also did the same. They both stared at Lance before bursting into laughter. 

  
  


“Oh my arceus—! I’m sorry— but you look— pfft—!” 

  
  


“Bloody hell—! What happened to you, bro?!” Leon wheezed crouching down on the ground, with Moon supporting him by the shoulders. 

  
  


Moon coughed as she stopped herself from laughing any further, patting down her long red dress from any dusts. Hers was quite long on the skirt, and the sleeves— don’t get her started on the annoyingly long sleeve, it was even longer than her own hands and she had on a big hat covering the top of her curled hair. Nevertheless, she looked very fitting to be a real princess. 

  
  


Lance sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose, “Hhh, they made me put on this— _ridiculous robe_ , and _these shoes_..” 

  
  


“Holy—! I didn’t even notice those shoes! They’re so pointy—!” Leon snorted again, slowly regaining his composure. 

  
  


“Yeah, they look stupid. But they’re kind of comfy—“ 

  
  


“It kinda makes you look like some sort of— i dunno, a fraud prince, who’s actually a clown—?” 

  
  


Lance sighed at the remark, glancing around the others— just for him to see that the others were all standing around him while stifling their laughter. 

  
  


“Yeah, yeah. Very funny, go ahead, you can laugh, Diantha.” Diantha cleared her throat, while maintaining her smile. 

  
  


“Well, i must say— you look quite— _appealing_.” Diantha herself was wearing a gorgeous velvet white puffy dress, resembling a queen, with a delicate crown on her head, her usual hairstyle keeping it in place. Stifling a giggle behind her delicate gloved hand. 

  
  


_“My stars, Cynthia. You look as dazzling as ever— i might as bold as to say you look like an actual goddess from the heavens—“_ All of their attention was then turned towards the commotion on the other side of the trailer. 

  
  


Looking so effortlessly radiant was none other than Cynthia. Her hair was and her usual hair pieces were substituted by a similar hat that Moon wore— but Cynthia’s was slightly smaller, and was tilted a little bit to the left— wearing it like a beret. Cynthia wore a black silk tunic with laces on her neckline, and she wore a black lace glove to cover her right hand. Needless to say, the tunic hugged her figure perfectly. 

  
  


Of course, Steven had been looking forward to seeing his girlfriend’s costume for the photoshoot. He was slightly bitter when they had been ushered to different trailers. So, needless to say, Steven was dumbfounded when Cynthia walked out of her trailer. Revealing a goddess in disguise. Steven gawked at his girlfriend— yes he had acknowledged her beauty from the very start, even men and women were all enchanted by her radiant presence around them— but, this time, Steven had to admit, black was definitely her signature color. 

  
  


Cynthia had noticed Steven’s costume as well— although she was quite subtle about it. Steven was wearing a similar knight costume like Red’s; his face wasn’t covered by a knight’s helmet, he held in his hand instead; on his other hand he held a similar _‘longsword’._

  
  


Cynthia had wanted to go over to his side so badly, and kiss him right there on his adorable flustered face— but, she told herself to hold back. As she was approaching him silently, as the others were fussing around Lance, she thought it was a great opportunity to talk to her boyfriend. 

  
  


But, her movements were held back, when a certain older man waltzed in front of her. 

  
  


Alder, still sporting the same goofy grin, was not aware of the annoyed darkening expression of Steven. Cynthia couldn’t get a good look at Steven, as the Unova champion’s hat was too big— and was currently blocking her vision. 

  
  


Cynthia was about to scowl, but decided to give him a polite smile instead. 

“Oh, i— thank you, Alder.” 

  
  


  
  


As Cynthia felt the presence of the other champions surrounding them. She tensed, to her luck however, Diantha sidled up next to her and hugged her sideways, trailing her eyes up and down Cynthia’s figure, “ _My, my_. They went all out on your costume didn’t they—?” 

  
  


Cynthia felt somewhat relieved at Diantha’s arrival. Cynthia crossed her arms, and replied, “I could say the same to you. You look amazing as always.” 

  
  


Diantha chuckled and swatted her hand on Cynthia’s shoulder, “And you look beautiful, my dear. Alder’s right— you look dazzling as always—“ 

  
  


Cynthia huffed, “Teasing as always, i see.” 

  
  


Diantha hummed, “Can you blame me?” 

As she glanced at Alder and Steven, Diantha could feel the tension between the two. Like the good friend she is, she handled the situation quite easily and subtly. She leaned towards Cynthia’s ear and whispered something, at the words Diantha told her, Cynthia’s eyes flickered to Steven, before averting her eyes back to Diantha’s. Diantha squeezed her hand in reassurance before leaving her to go inside the building. 

  
  


As the others followed, Cynthia was left with Steven. 

  
  


_Ah, yes. And then there were two._

  
  


Cynthia walked towards her sulking boyfriend, before gently grabbing his chin to meet her sharp yet warm gaze. 

  
  


Cynthia held his gaze before surging in to kiss him gently on the lips. His breath caught in his throat as Cynthia pulled apart, caressing his cheeks with her hands. The feeling of the gloved hand on his cheek made him blush. 

  
  


“Hey, you.” 

  
  


Steven gulped loudly, he whispered, “Hey..” 

  
  


Cynthia giggled, “What? Is something wrong?” 

  
  


Steven just stood there and absentmindedly held her waist in his hands. He snapped his gaze to hers. 

“I- uh..” 

  
  


“Hmm, and here i thought you were going to give me a heartwarming compliment—“ Cynthia hummed teasingly at his flabbergasted expression. 

  
  


Steven laughed breathlessly, studying her appearance before finally saying, “I was about to, before Alder— interrupted...” 

  
  


Cynthia gave him a raised brow, before giving him a teasing smirk. 

“Are you...jealous, Mr. Stone..?” 

  
  


  
  


Steven cleared his throat, averting his eyes away from Cynthia’s. 

  
  


“N-no, i’m not. It was just...unpleasant to witness—“ 

  
  


Cynthia chuckled shaking her head, humming as she kissed her lover’s temple, “Steven, you know that i only have eyes for you, right?” 

  
  


Steven averted his eyes back to her loving gaze, as he replied, “I know...i guess i was just being paranoid— sorry, _love_.” 

  
  


“Don’t worry about it, _my love_. You look just as handsome as ever, by the way...” 

  
  


Steven melted at her words as they leaned their foreheads together, sighing in content, he whispered, “You look very stunning, _love_. I have to confess, I can’t take my eyes off of you—“ 

  
  


Cynthia gave a hearty chuckle, leaning in for another kiss, _“Good. Because i was hoping for that—“_

  
  


_“Um—“_ their moment however was momentarily broken off by a timid voice calling them. 

  
  


It appears to be one of the stylists. The small woman was telling them to go inside as the shoot was about to begin. 

  
  


As the both of them went inside, the photoshoot session has officially begun. 

  
  


  
  


———***———

  
  


  
  


“Lance— can you move a little bit to the left, please—?” 

  
  


“Uh— like this?” 

  
  


“No, just a little bit more—“ 

  
  


“Here—?” 

  
  


“Yeah, that’s perfect! Oh, and everybody please don’t smile, and try to look more intimidating this time! We’re going for a serious picture for this one—!” 

  
  


The champions nodded at the professional photographer’s words. Putting on their most intimidating and serious expressions on. They had been doing the shoot for almost an hour and a half now. And they were all quite exhausted, although it had only been an hour and a half, they felt like the shoot had been going on for hours. 

  
  


Leon groaned in his throne, _“How does Nessa do this?”_ Diantha chuckled on her throne beside his, “Even though i’ve been doing these kind of shoots for years now, i have to confess— these costumes are quite _suffocating_ —“

  
  


_“Ugh, tell me about it—“_ Lance grumbled in his current position, a hand on his robe and the other on a staff— in this scenario, he was the _‘Royal advisor’_ ; beside him Leon who poses as the _‘King’_ sat on the high throne; on the other throne was Diantha, who dresses as the _‘Queen’_ ; beside her was the _‘Princess’_ , Moon, who wasn’t as experienced as the others, but still effortlessly posing as the royal daughter of the two; Cynthia stood regally next to Moon, posing as the _‘Lady-in-waiting’_ ; Alder was standing at Lance’s side as the _‘Duke’_ ; on either side of the royal family, were the _‘Knights’_ ; Red stood silently at Leon’s side, while Steven at Diantha’s side. 

  
  


  
  


“Um, how long is this photoshoot going to last? My feet kind of hurts from these heels..” Moon winced as she shifted her weight in between her feet, as she does this she stumbled upon her long skirt, almost falling unbalanced, thankfully, Cynthia caught her with ease. As Moon smiled gratefully at the older woman, Cynthia patted Moon’s head, “I’m sure it’ll be all over soon—“

  
  


As Cynthia said this, the makeup-artists have all huddled up next to their respective champions, and touched up their makeup, and fixing any wrinkles in their costumes or tangle in their hair. 

  
  


The producer shouted through the air-horns _“Just one more picture, and all of you can be dismissed!!”_

  
  


Hearing the announcement, Steven could hear the sound of relief the other champion let out. He too— couldn’t wait to spend the rest of his trip in Galar with Cynthia. He just wished he could get over this photoshoot quickly. 

  
  


_“Okay, everyone— places, please!”_

  
  


The champions got to their places quickly, as the photographer gave his orders for the poses. 

  
  


A couple of pictures taken later, and the photoshoot was over. 

  
  


_“And—that’s a wrap!! Thank you again for your hard work everyone! And thank you for coming!!”_ The producer of the magazine that they were going to be on shouted through the air-horn again. Making the people inside wince. 

  
  


Lance took off his robe and sighed, “ _Finally—_ this robe was getting too stuffy..” 

  
  


Leon chuckled, as the stylist started to usher them to their trailers again, to take off their makeup and costumes. “Aw, c’mon that robe looks good on you, mate!” Leon half-shouted as he followed the stylists back to his trailer. 

  
  


Steven glanced at his tired looking girlfriend. Cynthia stifled a yawn glancing at him, and mouthed, _“I’ll meet you back at the hotel.”_ Steven nodded in understanding, as he watched his girlfriend getting back into her trailer. 

  
  


Steven would have to remind himself to grab them something to eat before returning back to their shared hotel bedroom.

  
  


After all, today was certainly a very exhausting day for the champions. 

  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  



	15. The Midnight Talk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 15! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)

It was midnight when Steven arrived back at the hotel that he booked in Galar. The bustling life of the city had long died down. Only a few people and pokemon are still wandering around at this time. Surely enough Steven couldn’t wait to go to bed and call it a day. 

  
  


He had made a quick stop at the nearest restaurant and made a take-out order for both him and Cynthia. But then, he noticed that it was a bit too late for dinner. 

  
  


Steven sighed as he fumble with his card key, hoping that the food won’t go stale. _“Oh well, we can heat up for tomorrow i suppose.”_

  
  


As the door beeped, Steven unlocked the door quietly, and took off his shoes and belongings. The room he booked was a nice spacious one— not too fancy, but still comfortable to sleep on, it had a living room and a mini-fridge, there’s also a huge window that leads to a balcony, and the bed was more than spacious. 

  
  


Steven took a peek at the bedroom, hoping that he wouldn’t wake her up. He had thought that the Sinnoh champion had fallen asleep at this hour, considering they had been through quite a long day. 

  
  


But what surprised him is that Cynthia had not fallen asleep yet. Instead, she was curled in the bed comfortably reading a book she brought with her. Noticing Steven’s presence, Cynthia smiled and closed her book. _“Welcome back.”_

  
  


Steven walked over to her side and kissed her temple, as he ruffled her hair, “Hey, i thought you went to bed early.” 

  
  


Cynthia smiled as she helped him untie his tie. “I couldn’t sleep. So, i waited for you.” 

  
  


Steven chuckled as Cynthia continued to unbutton his uniform with ease. “I got us dinner...but, considering it’s the middle of the night already, i don’t think we should—“ 

  
  


Cynthia hummed in agreement, it was late after all, she once told him that eating late at night isn't good for you, Steven had taken note of her advice ever since then. Thoughts fading away as she finished unbuttoning his uniform, he leaned down to kiss her as thanks for the help. Steven whispered, “I’m going to take a quick shower.” 

  
  


Cynthia smiled as she opened up her book again, "Don't be in there for too long. Or you could get a cold--" Steven replied "I will." as he went inside holding his towel and new fresh set of pajamas, she began to read, holding the bookmark in hand, as she could hear the faint turning of the shower knob. 

  
  


As time goes by, she was too engrossed in her book, that she didn’t even realize Steven came out of the shower, and was only wearing a towel to cover himself. Steven took this opportunity to grab the special wine that he bought at the store earlier. The salesman was generous enough to give him a discount for being his only late night customer-- at first Steven had not planned to buy wine at a store in Galar in the middle of the night, but seeing that the man was being that kind to him, made him give in and before he knew it, he had came out of the store holding a wine in hand, and two bottles of fresh water. Steven sighed silently, hoping Cynthia was still in the mood for a drink or two. After all, wine was undoubtedly the platinum blonde haired woman's favorite drink. 

  
  


As Cynthia heard the faint clearing of his throat, she looked up to find his toned muscles bare in front of her. As Steven said something, Cynthia was too distracted to even notice Steven talking to her. 

  
  


Cynthia widened her eyes as she was mesmerized by how toned he is— of course, she had thought of the man’s muscles. She had thought that with the amount of digging and lifting rocks was Steven’s own way for working out. But, Cynthia didn’t know he was— that — chiseled. 

  
  


Cynthia could feel the faint blush on her cheeks, as the man cleared his throat again, chuckling as he caught his girlfriend staring. Cynthia coughed lightly, as she glanced at Steven’s knowing eyes. 

“I— i’m sorry. I must’ve been distracted— could you repeat what you said—?” 

  
  


Steven chuckled again, and smirked, “It’s alright. Wine—?” As he held out a wine that he purchased a while ago, and two empty glasses that the hotel happened to coincidentally provide.

At first, he thought that Cynthia was staring at the bottle of wine he held, but the longer he studied her gaze, Steven realized that his girlfriend wasn't staring at the bottle itself-- instead, he followed her shy flustered gaze down to his-- abs --Cynthia was distracted by his abs. This indeed had made both parties flustered--- but, Steven still couldn't believe that Cynthia was _'that'_ distracted by his toned stomach. Of course, she would react like this, Steven had never stood in front of her without wearing a shirt or some sort to cover his secretly toned body, and vice versa. So, of course, Cynthia would get flustered like this-- but, still, Steven had found it amusing-- very amusing, that he finally found one of Cynthia's hidden weaknesses. 

  
  


Cynthia nodded slowly, as she watched Steven’s toned arms as he— _"No. Bad, bad Cynthia. It’s rude to stare, and you know that. Besides, if he were to find out, you will feel even more—"_ Cynthia gulped as Steven opened the bottle and poured the red liquid inside the fancy looking glass-- but, she wasn't exactly watching the liquid, it was more like she was watching Steven pour it-- Cynthia could feel her face reddening with guilt, as she watched the muscles contract in his hands-- if the room could be a little bit more brighter, perhaps she could stare at them better. But, Cynthia quickly got rid of the absurd thoughts, before it consumes her with even more ridiculous thoughts.

  
  


“Something on your mind?” As her thoughts were suddenly cut off by her boyfriend sitting down next to her in bed, she regained her composure and accepted the glass. “Th-thank you..” Taking a sip of the wine, she decided to act like something never happened, inhaling the rich scent of the wine, she hummed appreciatively. Cynthia always loved a good wine, it made her stress and worries go away for a minute, but, her favorite thing when she's drinking the liquid was that, she always had drank it with her loved ones-- When she first turned 21, she drank it with her grandmother; Then, she drank it again when her little sister turned 21; She drank it the third time with the Elite four members when she became champion; The fourth time was with her good friend, Diantha; The fifth and the remaining times-- even until now, she drank at with Steven. Of course, it had not been Cynthia's favorite from the very start, but as time grew, and as she met other people that had turned into special peoples in her life, the love for wine grew. Making wine her favorite drink to share with her loved ones. 

  
  


Cynthia smiled as she looked at her reflection on the glass, she glanced at the Hoenn champion, only to see Steven wearing a loose shirt— much to Cynthia’s disappointment, but she decided to let it go. As much as she wanted to stare at her boyfriend’s muscles, she has to think about her boyfriend’s health as well. She didn’t want him to get sick, after all. 

  
  


The both of them drank in silence, when Steven decided to blurt out the question. 

  
  


  
  


“So, distracted..huh—?” Steven asked, trying his best not to use a teasing tone. 

  
  


Cynthia sipped her wine, before twirling her glass in her hand, her eyes following the flowing movement. Cynthia noticed the teasing face he was sporting on in the corner of her eye, cheeks reddening at the question. “I didn’t mean to stare—“ 

  
  


Steven chuckled, as he scooted closer and puts his arm around the Sinnoh champion. Putting down the finished glass on the table beside the bed, he teased, “You know— it’s quite rare to see you distracted like that.” 

  
  


Cynthia puts down her wine and turned to him, crossing her arms as she glared at him playfully. “Oh? And i assume you like it when i get distracted like that..?” 

  
  


Steven laughed breathlessly, as he toyed with her fingers. “Well, it’s certainly a rare sight, that’s for sure. Perhaps, i should start doing so, in the future, no?” 

  
  


Cynthia scoffed playfully, earning a laugh from the man next to her. “You wouldn’t—“ 

  
  


“Oh, but i would, if it means i could watch you stare at me again.” 

  
  


“Well, how could i not stare— _you came out without a shirt—!_ ” 

  
  


Upon the embarrassed tone Cynthia used, Steven chuckled quietly, peppering her with kisses, “ _Hm_ , well in that case, i suppose you can stare for as long as you want—“ 

  
  


Cynthia rolled her eyes at him, smile widening, “What exactly are you trying to say here, Mr. Stone..?” 

  
  


Steven tilted his head in retort, “Nothing, just that— you don’t have to feel shy or embarrassed to stare— because, i must confess, i’ve been staring at you quite a lot earlier—“ 

  
  


Cynthia raised a brow, shaking her head, still smiling, “I guess we’re even then.” 

  
  


Steven smiled gesturing for Cynthia to lie down on the bed. He whispered, “I guess so.” 

  
  


Cynthia shifted her position to cuddle next to him, putting an arm on his chest, as she traced her forefinger around his chest covered shirt. Silently trying to feel the muscles underneath. “You must lift heavy stuff a lot..” Cynthia whispered. 

  
  


Steven gave her a grin, “Yeah, mostly rocks and i do work out, when i have the time.” 

  
  


Cynthia hummed, feeling bold— she traced her hand down to lift Steven’s shirt and traced his toned muscles underneath with delicate fingers, she hummed again, “Well, it certainly did work out— your muscles are very defined...” Steven laughed at her amusingly, as he kissed her head, studying her features, “We should go to a spa sometimes..” Cynthia offered, “I mean— you’ve been working a lot that your muscles became tense—“

  
  


“Mm, that’s a great idea— i heard Alola has the best spa we can go to.” 

  
  


“Are you feeling tired yet?” Cynthia asked as she looked up at his solemn expression. 

  
  


Steven hummed in response, “Yeah, are you?” 

  
  


Cynthia nodded as she hid a yawn beneath Steven’s shirt, hugging him like a koala. Steven smiled warmly at her, whispering, “We should sleep now, we have that tour with Leon, after all—“ 

  
  


As Steven said that, Cynthia’s eyes began to close, smiling in the process. 

  
  


Steven kissed her temple again, “Goodnight, Cynthia.” 

  
  


As he closed his eyes, he could hear a faint “Goodnight, _love._ ” Making him smile as he drifted off to dreamland. 

  
  


  
  


  
  



	16. The Accusations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 16! Please enjoy!
> 
> Sorry for not updating for the last 2 days, i was not feeling so well.  
> Honestly, today was one of those days;;;; sorry for rambling here, lol. The last 3 days weren't great for me.  
> But, please enjoy this Parks n Recreation inspired chapter! If u know the coffee machine meme, then u might get the reference (I just modified it a little bit). Anyways, please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)

“Alright. Who did it?” The room fell quiet as the Dragon master— Lance crossed his arms and glared at his surroundings. Eyeing each and every champion in the room. They had all decided to hangout together at Lance’s room— much to his dismay. 

  
  


“What exactly are you implying, son?” Alder asked as his attention never left the game that he and Leon was playing on the flat-screen. 

  
  


Lance sighed and rolled his eyes, showing them the broken toy that he was holding in his hand, “Someone here broke my Dragonite’s favorite ball to play with..” 

  
  


As the room filled with _“Oohs and Aahs”_ Lance huffed in return, “Please, tell me that one of you did it— because my Dragonite is currently outside of that balcony and refuses to get back into his pokeball until either one of you confess.” 

“Well, it wasn’t me, i just got here.” Moon replied while munching on the snacks that Leon provided, watching the Alder and Leon play on the switch. Red gave him a shrug as he watched the game in front of him. 

  
  


Cynthia spoke up from the corner, while cuddling with Steven on the couch, “Same here. Where did you last put the toy—?” 

  
  


Lance sighed as he turned to Cynthia, “Well, Dragonite was playing with his toy earlier before you guys came in, then decided to go outside when the commotion startled him—“

  
  


“And what makes you think one of us did it?” Diantha chimed in, lounging on a lounge chair, lying down while propping a hand on her head. 

  
  


“Well, Dragonite left his toy on the floor, probably startled to even notice he dropped it..” 

  
  


Diantha huffed— trying to be a good friend, she decided to leave her comfortable place to help Lance figure out the culprit.

  
  


“Alright boys. That’s enough playing— Cynthia—“ 

  
  


Cynthia stared blankly at the Kalos champion as she retorted _“What—?”_

  
  


Diantha gestured to the floor, where everybody was currently sitting on. 

  
  


“Come on, _sit._ ” 

  
  


Cynthia frowned as she untangled herself from Steven, making the Hoenn champion chuckle amusingly. 

  
  


Sitting on the floor creating a circle, the champions eyed each other— as if they’re trying to very hard not to accuse each other right on the spot. 

  
  


Silence creeped around the room. As Lance sighed heavily, before saying, “So, i ask once again— who did it? I’m not mad. I just wanna know—“

  
  


Before he could finish his sentence, the silence was quickly broken by the loud shouts and screams of accusation. 

  
  


“I did it. I broke it.” Moon stated, biting her lip in the process. 

  
  


“No. You didn’t. Leon?” Lance retorted smiling softly at Moon. Lance knew that Moon was doing this just so they could get over this problem, and he knew very well that the Alola champion was too innocent and nice to even try and break something. 

  
  


“What? Don’t look at me, mate. Look at Steven—!” Leon sat up straight, as he pointed his finger at Steven. 

  
  


“What—? I did no such thing, you all clearly saw me walked in with Cynthia earlier—!” 

  
  


“ _Huh._ That’s weird how do you know it’s even broken?” Alder squinted his eye at the Hoenn champion, who retorted, “Because Lance said so?” 

  
  


Alder squinted his eyes further at Steven, before turning to Red, as he accused the quiet trainer, “ _Hm. Suspicious._ Maybe all you kids were too busy to even notice that the one who broke it was Red!” who in retort, raised his brows and glared at the older man. 

  
  


“I really don’t think Red or Steven did it...” Moon timidly muttered as the accusations continued. 

  
  


“If it matters, probably not...Moon was the last one to came in Lance’s room...” Leon leaned in closer to Moon, rubbing his bearded chin, as Moon jumped slightly, hiding her face behind the glass of juice she was holding. 

  
  


“You all are acting like children. Look what you did to Moon—! You scared her. Does this face look like the face of a criminal to you?!” Cynthia scolded at the others, making Leon snicker “Yeah, sorry about that, mate—“ 

Cynthia scoffed, "Yeah. I don't think so."

  
  


“Maybe, the reason why Leon is accusing people, it’s because he was actually the one who did it!!” Alder shouted as he slammed his glass onto the carpeted floor. 

  
  


“C’mon old man. What in the bloody hell—?!” 

“Look, there’s no shame in confessing, boy. It’s never too late.” Alder shrugged as he crossed his arms. 

  
  


“I didn’t do it mate!” 

  
  


“Diantha, your awfully quiet in this...” Lance started, eyeing the Kalos champion’s movements. 

  
  


Diantha snorted and glared at Lance _“Really?!”_

  
  


Lance gave her a blank stare, _“Yeah, really!”_

  
  


“Oh, please. You’re playing _that_ card now?” 

  
  


Leon shrugged agreeing with Lance, “Yeah, mate. You’ve been kinda quiet since you came here.” 

  
  


Diantha gasped dramatically, as she puts a hand to her chest in shock and disbelief. “Well, i would never.” 

  
  


Alder shouted as he slammed his fists again on the floor, “Can somebody please just confess already, geez you young people sure are stubborn sometimes—“ 

  
  


“ _Stubborn—_? Did you just call us stubborn?!” Diantha raised her voice in annoyance.

  
  


Diantha scoffed, chuckling sarcastically, _“Unbelievable.”_

  
  


“Can you guys stop shouting and accusing each other for a minute, please—?” Moon who was sitting beside Cynthia shaked her head as she watched the chaotic scene in front of her. 

  
  


Cynthia huffed as she tried to soothe the scared Moon, she said “It’s hopeless. They’re not listening to us.” 

  
  


Moon sighed, “I wish we can just get this over with—“ 

  
  


  
  


“All right, let’s not fight. I broke it, i’ll buy your Dragonite a new toy.” Steven spoke trying to calm the others down, while Cynthia gave him a glare, making him purse his lips and quickly closing his mouth. 

  
  


Steven also noticed the way Cynthia gave him a look— Steven nodded at Cynthia’s gesture. As Cynthia rose up, leaving Moon confused, Steven scooted over to Cynthia’s previous place and patted Moon’s head, as he spoke quietly. “It’s alright. Cynthia’s just going to try to calm down Lance’s Dragonite, and hopefully, he will want to return to his pokeball.” 

  
  


Moon smiled at the gesture as she thought, _“This is one of the reasons why i look up to the both of them. They’re just so effortlessly cool..”_

  
  


As the others continued to bicker and point their fingers at each other, they didn’t notice that the Sinnoh champion had opened the balcony, letting the cool air of the night entering the room. 

  
  


  
  


As Cynthia stepped outside, she could feel the cold wind blowing at her face, hair flowing behind her. She spotted the dragon-type quickly, as he was currently sitting on the rail of the balcony, head hung low, as she stepped closer to get a better look at Dragonite. 

  
  


Cynthia had expected him to snarl or flinch when her fingers grazed Dragonite’s shoulder. But, instead he sobbed quietly, while still holding the broken toy on his hand, clutching it tightly to his chest. 

  
  


It pained Cynthia to see him like this. Having plenty of experience in raising dragon-types herself. She could instantly know how to cheer him up. Cynthia just hoped that her plan would work, because honestly, she just wants the other to stop bickering and shouting— it’s making her stressed. 

  
  


Meanwhile, the others were still shouting at each other, neither seemed to be stopping anytime soon. 

  
  


As Lance slowly got up and walked to the window that heads to the balcony, he sighed and stared blankly at his reflection, tuning out all of the shouts and screams the others were throwing at each other. Shaking his head at the chaos that was happening behind him. He looked at the moon’s reflection with a straight face and said—

  
  


  
  


“It was nobody’s fault. Dragonite broke it. He burned his hand while we were training and was in pain, so he bit the toy until it broke. I predict ten minutes from now, they’ll be at each other’s throats with warpaint in their faces and a grumpig’s head on a stick—“ 

  
  


“Good. It was getting a little bit chummy in here.” 

  
  


  
  



	17. The Lunch break

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 17! Please enjoy this short chapter!
> 
> Hi, sorry if this chapter is short, i'll be back tomorrow with another chapter. For now, please bear with me. lol. I'm actually kinda feeling better. Anyways, please stay safe and enjoy reading this chapter!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)

Metagross stood stiffly as he shifted his limbs anxiously. The metal-type eyed his restless trainer carefully. 

  
  


Steven was now walking back and forth in his office. Holding his phone and giving it a stare every now and then. He suddenly stopped in his tracks and gave the phone another stare— Metagross worried that if his trainer keeps glaring at the poor phone, it’ll eventually blow up in his face. Shaking his head, and throwing the awful thoughts away, Metagross gave Steven a low rumble, as if he’s asking, _“Are you okay—?” , and "You're making me very very anxious right now. Is your tummy upset--?"_

  
  


Metagross had expected Steven to stop pacing around the room, and tell him about the thing that has been bothering his trainer for quiet some time now, btu instead he was met with silence. Which made Metagross even more confused, like he doesn't know what to do to his upset trainer-- well, Metagross wasn't really sure if Steven was even upset, he just looked very down since the moment his lunch break started. Previously, when his trainer was still sitting in his chair, working, he could not see the evident worried expression before. So, maybe something had happened after he was done with his work? Metagross wondered, _"He was never not satisfied with his work. Perhaps one of the men that came here had said something to upset him?"_ Metagross couldn't figure it out somehow. As Steven suddenly muttered without looking up from his phone, “What is it, Metagross? Do you want some poke-blocks?” 

Steven was probably aware that Metagross was staring at him for a while now, and had decided to call Metagross out. 

  
  


Metagross tilted his head in confusion, raising a limb to scratch his head, and replied _“But you already gave me my daily dose of poke-blocks...”_

  
Metagross scooted over to Steven and looked up at him, _"I mean-- if you want to give me more, i wouldn't say no--"_ Before Metagross could react any further, Steven had already gotten some poke-blocks out of his pocket, tossing them into the air with ease.   
  


As Metagross' eyes followed the flying poke-blocks he opened his mouth and hummed, savoring the sweetness of the tasty treat. Even though Metagross seemed like an intimidating pokemon, he could be quite sweet and caring, even towards the rest of Steven's party pokemon, he was usually the one who kept them in place, when his trainer was busy or was not available, and Steven trusted him to take care of the sometimes chaotic pokemon Steven had. And one of Metagross' favorite food was of course the sweet poke-blocks that Steven made specifically for Metagross. Which made Metagross even more happy to eat them, humming in delight once again as he gulped down the poke-blocks, he looked at Steven's pockets, looking to see if he had more-- but, of course, Steven had been told that you can't exactly give your pokemon too much sweets, even though some might say that it's actually good for pokemon coordinators, but Steven wasn't a coordinator, so therefore, Metagross would have to wait for his sweet treats for another day-- much to his dismay. 

Metagross set aside the thoughts, it's his trainer that he needs to look after right now. "He clearly looks like he's experiencing lovesickness." Metagross grumbled beneath his breath. 

Steven took a deep breath and held out his phone, opening the lock-screen, only to see his wallpaper— which was his selfie with Cynthia that they took on their first real date as a couple, the date itself was a very memorable one for both Steven and Cynthia, it had been engraved in his head ever since. He still grinned at the selfie gleefully every time he opens his phone. Cynthia herself had a similar picture of them, and now that their relationship was public, they don’t have to be afraid of showing their affections for one another. 

  
  


  
  


Steven pursed his lips while he looked at Cynthia’s smile— it was warm, and soothing; to Steven, just watching and hearing Cynthia’s smile and laughter made him all warm and fuzzy inside. Oh, how Steven longed to see her again— just the thought of Cynthia in his arms made him sigh in disappointment, because right now, the circumstances were not possible for him to visit and meet her. 

  
  


Steven was actually looking forward to spending their usual evening dates. But, with how busy he is at work, he’s unfortunately stuck in his stuffy office. 

  
  


Cynthia herself was not available for the next few weeks— as it was finally the Sinnoh champion league tournaments, and being the champion, she clearly has to be there, preparing the battlefield, matches and such. Not to mention, she gets the honor to be one of the commentators in the tournaments, making it more impossible for her to take some time to herself or to contact Steven. 

  
  


Steven had at least hoped that he could visit her and watch the tournament live in he stadium. But, again. This wasn’t the case this time. 

  
  


For now, Steven could only lock himself in his office and finish his work. He doesn’t want his father’s work to go to waste, after all. 

  
  


Steven really shouldn’t be wasting his lunch break time staring at the screen of his rotom phone. Steven didn’t even notice his partner pokemon placing a bottle of water and his lunch box on the paper-filled table; telling Steven to eat. 

  
  


Steven finally snapped from his daze, after he heard another low rumble from Metagross. Red eyes piercing to his trainer’s gray ones, Metagross nodded at his lunch, as if telling him to at least eat something, or he’ll get sick. If Cynthia was here right now with him, he would probably be eating lunch with her right now-- _"I wonder if she has eaten lunch yet..."_ He thought in his head. 

  
  


“Oh, right— _lunch._ ” Steven raised his arm to open the plastic-container that held his lunch, taking a bite out of the sandwich he made for himself, he noticed Metagross was staring quietly at Steven. 

  
  


Steven offered the Steel-type a sandwich, Metagross lifted a limb and lightly pushed back the offered sandwich to Steven’s chest letting out a reverberating sound, _“You’re the one who needs to eat, not me.”_

  
  


Steven pursed his lips, “I know, and thank you for reminding me, it’s just— i feel weird...” words trailing off as he glanced at his phone again. 

  
  


Metagross suddenly knew why his trainer was looking so gloom. Metagross stepped closer, gently tapping Steven’s phone and looked up at Steven, tilting his head, letting out a few rumbles, _“You must miss her a lot. Why don’t you try calling her with that thing you’re holding?”_

  
  


Steven glanced at his partner then back at his phone again. He gave a small smile to Metagross. Knowing well what the pseudo-legendary was insinuating. Steven let out a heavy sigh as he unconsciously tightened his grip on his phone, hoping that it won’t suddenly break into pieces in his hands. Metagross seemed to have noticed his hesitance, as he nudged his trainer again, _"You might regret it if you don't call her."_

  
  


  
  


Truthfully, Steven had thought of calling Cynthia, just to check on her if she’s doing alright— considering the amount of responsibilities and work that she has— and it isn’t like he was lovesick or anything, Steven couldn’t deny that he missed her, heck, he actually missed her a lot, to the point where he couldn’t focus on eating. Again, Steven didn’t feel like he’s experiencing that thing where long distance relationships tend to experience. — but, to the people who could see Steven’s behavior would probably see right through him and set a conclusion that the Hoenn champion was actually experiencing lovesickness. 

  
  


Steven really wants to call his girlfriend. They had not called or texted each other since two days ago. It was getting Steven worried, his stomach churning and turning as he gulped down his food, he was just afraid that something had gone wrong. 

  
  


Steven erased the thought out of his mind and looked at Metagross, opening his mouth a couple of times before finally saying, “Do you think, i should really call her? I mean, she hasn’t contacted me for a while now...i’m just not sure if i should bother her with a phone call.” 

  
  


"I mean-- what if she's still working? i really don't want to interrupt her concentration--" Steven continued rambling, as he fiddled with his tie nervously, finally feeling the heat creeping into his tailored suit. 

Metagross let out a huff and nodded in retort, tapping his claws gently to the screen. 

_“I think you should. I think she would like it if you did, trust me.”_

  
  


Staring at his master’s anxious eyes, he gave him a curt nod. _“Go on. I know you want to. You’ll regret it if you don’t.”_

  
  


Steven sighed, and smiled, patting Metagross in the head, he said “Thank you, my friend. I think i will.” 

  
  


Metagross let out a pleased rumble before observing Steven, as the man pressed dial and waited a couple rings to finally getting answered by Cynthia. 

  
  


_“Hello, Cynthia? I— ah, i was wondering if you’re busy right now? I’m not bothering you, right?”_

  
  


Metagross couldn’t hear the other person on the line, but he could tell by how Steven’s restrained smile turned into a relieved-genuine one, that his partner’s girlfriend is also happy to finally talk to the silver-haired man. 

  
  


Metagross’ eyes closed while silently listening to the last words, _“I miss you as well, my love.”_ , before the metal-type drifted off to sleep, he shook his metallic head, letting out a silent rumble, _"I'm glad that you somehow got rid of your lovesickness, master. Even though it's only for a little while, but hang in there--"_ He observed the way Steven smiled and laughed as he talked with Cynthia. Metagross sat silently in his place, and let the drowsiness takes him away to dreamland. 


	18. The Surprise Visit

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 18! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)

  
  


  
  


Steven woke up to the smell of a sweet scent from his bedroom on the second floor. Steven opened his eyes, rubbing them carefully as he adjusted his vision to the bright morning sun that peeked from the curtains of his windows. 

  
  


He puts down his feet on the carpeted floor slowly as he squinted his eyes in confusion. 

  
  


_“Wait. Isn’t the maid supposed to be here on Mondays and Fridays—? I’m sure i’m not mistaken. Today is Saturday, right?”_ He muttered, walking to grab his phone and checked the calender. Widening his eyes at his phone. 

  
  


“It is Saturday. If it isn’t the maid...then who—?” Steven gasped as a thought slammed into his head. 

  
  


“If it’s Wallace again. _I swear—_ “ Steven sighed as he quickly got changed into his more appropriate clothing but still comfy for his daily activities at home. 

  
  


He was supposed to be working now at his father’s office. But, his father insisted that he took the day off, saying something about him relieving the stress that Steven has been building up ever since his father announced that they were going to develop a new and improved product that will sure benefit their company and other people as well. 

  
  


Steven was actually looking forward to testing out the prototypes. But, he knew that if he showed up to the office, he would be scolded by his father for pushing himself again. 

  
  


The Hoenn champion had a habit of not sleeping properly and getting stressed easily. His sleep-deprivation was only cured when he was dismissed for the holidays or when he had a day off. Other than spending the time sleeping, he mostly spends his time with Cynthia. 

  
  


Speaking of the Sinnoh champion. Cynthia was supposed to arrive at Hoenn tomorrow. Her duties as champion and a commentator for the Sinnoh champion tournament is done. 

  
  


Steven of course had watched the exhibition match with Cynthia and the challenger that won their way up to the top. But, unfortunately the match ended in defeat on the challenger’s side, but a massive win on Cynthia’s side. 

  
  


He had expected this, of course. Steven thought, as long as Cynthia was still reigning as champion, it’ll be a challenge for sure if somebody wants to dethrone her. 

  
  


Steven then jogged down the stairs as he could make out the sounds of metal clanking more clearly. His curiosity rose up, furrowing his brows as he finally stepped closer to the kitchen area, he widened his eyes as he stood there like a statue, gawking at the person who has woken him up with a delicious scent of breakfast. 

  
  


There she was. Cynthia stood tall at the kitchen counter, smiling as she finished preparing breakfast, pouring some fresh-brewed coffee as she looked up at Steven. 

  
  


“Good morning, you’re up early.” Cynthia went and sat on a chair and shifted her weight to adjust. Not noticing Steven’s perplexed expression. 

  
  


Steven, still wasn’t sure if this was a dream or not, rubbed his eyes again, trying to make sure the woman in front of her was actually real. 

  
  


As he stared at her intensely, Cynthia gave him a bemused chuckle, gesturing for him to sit down next to her. 

  
  


As Steven took a sit, he turned to her and spoke up, “I’m not dreaming, right? Are you really here?” 

  
  


Cynthia tilted her head still smiling, “Of course, sorry if i startled you— it’s just, i know we haven’t been seeing each other for quite some time, so, i decided to surprise you with a breakfast. I hope you don't mind, i made your favorite"

  
  


Steven smiled as he went ahead and pulled the Sinnoh champion in a heartwarming hug. He loves the way her fresh rose scent smells, it was comforting in a way, he loves the way how she hugged him like she was holding onto him for her dear life. Oh, how he misses her. 

  
  


“You arrived earlier than i expected.” 

  
  


Cynthia gave a low airy chuckle, “Were you surprised?” 

  
  


“Oh, most definitely. But, it’s a pleasant one. _I missed you, love. So much._ ” 

  
  


Cynthia hummed, letting a pleasant noise as she backed away from him before she surged in to kiss him properly. Sighing in content and satisfaction as they intertwined their hands on her lap. 

  
  


“I missed you too, you know. Oh, and i got in here using the spare key you gave me, by the way. Sorry again for startling you, _my love._ ” Steven shook his head in reply, “Don’t apologize. I gave you the key, so you could visit anytime. And honestly, i’m glad that it wasn’t Wallace who decided to make me breakfast.” 

  
  


Cynthia raised a brow in amusement, “Really, and why is that?” 

  
  


Steven sighed as he took his eating utensils and took a bite out of the waffles Cynthia made— as expected of Cynthia, the waffles were beautifully arranged and was topped with some fresh berries she brought from the comfort of her own home. He moaned pleasantly as he munched on them, savoring the sweet syrup combined with some crunchy goodness and sourness of the berries. 

  
  


“Well, for starters, Wallace makes terrible waffles. And, he has barged into my house a couple of times now, using a bobby pin. Which is basically theft, by the way.” He explained to Cynthia, moving his fork around, making Cynthia chuckle in amusement. 

  
  


“Well. It’s Wallace we’re talking about. So, of course he tends to do things in his own _dramatic_ way.” Cynthia replied, taking a sip of her brewed coffee.

  
  


“How is the new project doing? I assume it’s going well as planned?” Cynthia looked up at him, tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear, as she continued to eat. 

  
  


Steven gulped the food before answering, “Yeah, everything’s going amazingly well actually. The prototype is actually ready to be tested, but— ah, father wanted me to take the day off, since i’ve done my part well enough.” 

  
  


Cynthia hummed pleasantly, smiling up at him, cheeks still stuffed with waffles. As she does this, Steven blushed because he thought she looked like a _Greedent_ with her cheeks stuffed like that. It was a very adorable sight to see, it makes him wonder if she would ever stop attacking him with her flawless visuals. Probably never if Steven had to be honest. 

  
  


“Well, you always were a diligent and hardworking person, so i wouldn’t be surprised if your father gave you some time to relax. Besides, you seem to need it more than anyone.” Cynthia says, gesturing to his under eye bags. They were like pandas’ eyes, Cynthia thought, it was cute, she must admit. Of course the idea of her boyfriend having a sleep-deprivation is not really the best thing, she knows this. But, she couldn't help but feel that his tired eyes had actually made them more sharper than ever, and honestly, it was quite attractive--

  
  


“Hm. I suppose, i do need some rest. It’s been very hectic, thank god for weekends.” 

  
  


Cynthia let out a small laugh before grabbing their finished breakfast and went ahead to was the dirty dishes. 

  
  


“Well, it’s still early. Do you want to go back to bed?” Steven stood up and stretched his body, bones cracking as he felt one of his shoulders got tense. 

  
  


Steven walked up to Cynthia, and hugged her figure from behind. “Mm, not really, no. I want to spend time with my lovely girlfriend, is that too much to ask?” 

  
  


Cynthia hummed, and gave him a playful smirk, nudging his side with her back, “Oh, i don’t know. Are you willing to spend time on the couch while eating ice cream on your day off?” 

  
  


Steven chuckled, pursing his lips, as if he was contemplating his decision carefully. 

“ _Hmm,_ depends. Are you going to stay for dinner?” 

  
  


This time it was Cynthia’s turn to decide, putting a forefinger to her chin, humming thoughtfully for quite some time. Steven laughed amusingly at his girlfriend’s playfulness. It was certainly very amusing to watch. 

  
  


Cynthia smirked as she stepped away from his hands on her mid-riff, and proceeded to wipe her wet hands onto the clean dry cloth hanging beside the refrigerator. 

  
  


Steven huffed disappointedly, raising his brow, he followed her movements, as Cynthia took slow steps towards the living room, just to look back from her shoulder, and winked coyly at the gawking Hoenn champion. 

  
  


“Wouldn’t you like to know, _Mr. Stone—?_ ” 

  
  


  
  


_Oh. Very well._ So, this is how she’s going to play. Steven laughed in retort. Following the woman towards the living room.

  
  


He let out a satisfied huff as he took a sit next to her. If Steven didn’t know better, he thinks that Cynthia is actually teasing him right now. 

  
  


She really loves to do that nowadays. It isn’t as if Cynthia was particularly a cunning person— far from that actually, it’s just, when it comes to Steven, Cynthia admits that whenever Steven has this dorky smile that he puts on, or if he has this puppy eyes set on her, she has the urge to tease him in anyway she pleases. 

  
  


Steven is determined to make her answer his question. He wasn’t trying to make her stay, _no—_ but, he wishes she does stay, currently he just wants her to at least stay for dinner. He’s planning to take her out to a new restaurant that opened near his area. And, they’ve been apart from each other for almost a month now. So, what better way to show her some love and appreciation by spending time with her and taking his girlfriend out for dinner.

  
  


It’s also been almost 3 months since they came out to the public. It was also their first time going out on a public date on a lovely breezy evening, if Cynthia agreed to stay for dinner. 

  
  


But, clearly, the suspense around the room is making him worry and anxious, now Steven wasn’t even sure if she wants to stay here any longer, she does have her own duties that she needs to—

  
  


“Steven? Are you okay? You looked like you were in a deep thought there—“ Cynthia furrowed her eyebrows, slowly scooting over and putting a hand to his temple, checking his temperature, she hummed, and touched the nape of his neck, unknowing that her touch actually made his muscles even more tense. 

  
  


“ _Um_ , yes. No need to worry. I was just thinking about something.” 

  
  


Cynthia hummed, leaning her head on top of his chest, trying to listen to his beating heartbeat, “What were you thinking about?” She whispered quietly. 

  
  


_“You.”_

  
  


Cynthia stifled a giggle as she felt heat brushing her cheeks. 

  
  


_“Flatterer.”_

  
  


Steven gave her head a slight bump with his own, taking one of her manicured hand, he kissed the soft delicate skin chastely, leaving butterfly kisses in the process, while also making her giggle along the way. _“Steven, ahah— stop that please—“_

  
  


Steven raised a brow as he smirked deviously, “ _Oh—?_ And what makes you think i’ll stop?” 

  
  


Cynthia laughed harder as Steven finally found her _weak spot_ — one of her _hidden weaknesses_. _The nape of her neck!_ It was a forbidden area that almost no one knows about aside from her sister and Steven himself! It was a new discovery for Steven as well, as soon as he found out the zone. He tickled her neck without mercy, as she struggled to breath and talk. 

  
  


“I’ll stop if you're willing to answer my question.” 

  
  


Cynthia wheezed as she tried her best to stop laughing in his arms, she nodded furiously as she failed to find her voice to talk. As Steven chuckled in amusement, she took a deep breath, and wiped the evident sweat on her temple. 

  
  


“You’re _unbelievably_ merciless.” She let out a huff as she adjusted her position back onto Steven’s lap. 

  
  


Steven tilted his head, “Well, i suppose i’m lucky to know that i have a counter attack to your teasing now.” 

  
  


“ _Touché._ So, you really want to know the answer to your question?” Cynthia looked up to him, pursing her glossed lips together nervously. 

  
  


Steven hummed, playing with her hands. Studying her fingers— they were so incredibly long— yet, so small in contrast to Steven’s own fingers. Cynthia’s nails were perfectly manicured, painted with red-wine paint, and showed no stains around any of her fingers. There were some cuts and scars that bothered Steven. It made his stomach churn at the thought of something or somebody hurting Cynthia. Perhaps, he would’ve to wait to the day when Cynthia decided to share the story with him. But, not now. He thinks. For now, he could only protect and care for her. 

  
  


“Very much so, _love._ ” 

  
  


Cynthia sighed and gave him a soft smile as she kissed his cheek, “Then, _yes_. I would love to stay—“ 

  
  


  
  


“—i can even stay here for the night, that is, if you want me to...” Cynthia stared at his eyes, falling in love to his loving soft gaze all over again. 

  
  


  
  


  
  


“Of course, you can stay, _my love_.” 

  
  


“I’m glad. So, what are we having for dinner?” Cynthia chuckled at his dorky smile. 

  
  


“I was thinking of taking you out for dinner— there’s this new place that i’ve been dying to take you to...” Earning an amused laugh from Cynthia, Steven followed suit. As the both of them couldn’t wait for their evening date. 


	19. The Date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 19! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)
> 
> (I won't be updating tmrw, so i apologize beforehand. But, i'll try to update on Sunday)

The new restaurant Steven told her about was quite luxurious to say the least. It was previously a broken down place, Steven had said. The owners who had bought the run down place has definitely outdone themselves in decorating the place, Cynthia had to give them that. 

  
  


The building was coated with a beige-colored paint, flower fields filled the surroundings, a small pond could be seen with some water-type pokemon around the body of water, lamps illuminated their path as they walked towards the building hand-in-hand. 

  
  


As the both of them walked closer to the entrance, she could feel the intense gaze the attendant was giving them. 

  
  


And apparently, it wasn’t just her that noticed, Steven had gave her a knowing look. As if he’s telling her that they were probably going to be the talk of the town by tomorrow. Let’s just say, they might have to lay low for a few days if that does happen. Which to be honest, was what they had expected since they announced their relationship. It wasn’t new to them at all. 

  
  


The attendant’s jaw slacked and his gaze was fixed between the two before he cleared his throat, bowed his head in recognition. Welcoming them to the restaurant, Steven dismissed the attendant with a wave and a polite smile. 

  
  


Still lowering his head in embarrassment the attendant proceeded to escort them towards their seat. To say that the inside interior was lavish was a bit of an understatement, as the walls were tall, floor lined with red and gold carpets, and there was a big chandelier in the middle of the fancy room. Now, that Steven took a closer look at the chandelier, it looked suspiciously like the pokemon from the Unova region— or it could just be his hunch. But, he could swore that the chandelier moved a bit when they took their seats near the aquarium tank filled with lots of little fish pokemon. 

  
  


Cynthia smiled appreciatively at the waiter who was serving them for the evening. As the both of them scanned the menus carefully, the waiter had left them to serve other guests, while waiting for them to call him. 

  
  


Steven looked up from his menu and asked, “What’ll you be getting?” 

  
  


Cynthia furrowed her brows together, and strokes her chin slowly, humming, “There’s surprisingly a lot of options here— i’m having a tough time deciding, to be honest...” 

  
  


Steven gave a slight chuckle, “Well, why don’t we each get different dishes. That way we can share.” Cynthia hummed pleasantly at his idea, “ _Hm_ , yes, we should do that.” 

  
  


Steven gave another scan at the menu, before finally deciding on one, as he calmly signaled the waiter to take their orders. 

  
  


The waiter came back with a notebook in hand, that looked suspiciously like a merchandise from the Sootopolis gym that Wallace sold. 

  
  


  
  


At first Steven had thought that the waiter was a big fan of Wallace. But, the more he studied the man’s face, the more he realized that the ever so nervous waiter was wearing a fake mustache. Steven glanced at his hair, it was a brown wig. Steven tilted his head and narrowed his eyes in confusion. _“This man looks incredibly similar to Wallace.”_

  
  


As the waiter noticed Steven’s suspecting stare. He gave the Hoenn champion a tight-lipped smile before averting his eyes to his girlfriend, who was currently ordering them a dessert so share. 

  
  


Steven then noticed the way the waiter’s hair— wig, was slightly lowering down from his head when he bowed at them. 

  
  


This of course made Steven’s suspicion grew stronger. As he followed the waiter’s suspicious movements, he heard Cynthia calling out to him. 

  
  


“Ah— sorry, what were you saying?” 

Cynthia held Steven’s hands in hers, and looked at him with worry in her eyes. “Is something wrong?” She glanced backwards, trying to follow his gaze, only to see the door to the kitchen pantry. 

  
  


Steven then realized what he was doing and told Cynthia what he saw. Making Cynthia furrow her brows thoughtfully. 

  
  


“I mean, i could swore that he seemed awfully familiar...” Steven stated as he maintained eye contact with Cynthia. 

  
  


“Well, he did seemed a little bit suspicious when we arrived earlier— the mustache he was wearing was clearly fake, by the way.” Cynthia said as she stifled a laughter behind her hand. Steven shook his head in amusement, “Well, i must agree. That mustache and wig looks horrible on him. You might think he’s trying to spy on us or something—“ 

  
  


Cynthia suddenly tightened her grip on Steven’s hands, “You don’t really think, _he is_ do you—?” As she looked around narrowing her eyes as she absentmindedly bit her lips. 

  
  


Steven gave a shrug, and leaned in to caress her cheek, bringing her gaze towards him. “We might have to investigate it privately then. Just to see if our suspicions were right. Even if we were, i think it’s just the bothersome press, that’s been trying to get some information about us.” 

  
  


Cynthia let out a sigh, leaning into Steven’s warm touch. “If you say so. How do we investigate it though?” 

  
  


Steven tilted his head and pursed his lips together, then gave her a smirk, “I think i might have an idea.” 

  
  


  
  


———***———

  
  


  
  


  
  


“Your orders. Sir, madam” The couple thanked the suspicious waiter and waited for him to walk away, before eating their dinner. 

  
  


The quality of the food certainly didn’t disappoint. Cynthia hummed quietly as she munched on her steak. 

  
  


Steven suddenly flinched as he sipped onto the hot cream soup. Cynthia quickly handed him a glass of water, as she watched him down the entire glass with amusement. 

  
  


“Careful, love. Do you need more water?” Cynthia asked. While waiting for the Hoenn champion to recover from his burned tongue. “You okay?” 

  
  


Steven nodded, taking a deep breath before replying, “Yeah. Thank you. I just wasn’t expecting it to be that spicy.” 

  
  


Cynthia raised a brow, “Spicy?” As she took a spare spoon, and scooped a spoonful of Steven’s cream soup, she could feel Steven’s gaze at her. 

  
  


As if on cue, Cynthia widened her eyes, as she felt her mouth burning from the amount of spice that was in the soup. While Cynthia’s reaction wasn’t as shocking as Steven’s, she could tell that the spice was a little bit unbearable for her palate. Cynthia then took a sip of her water, and wondered, “What did they put in there?” 

  
  


“I suppose i can’t eat this soup anymore. I’m glad it came with fried rice though.” Steven shrugged, a little bit disappointed that he can’t eat the soup, he was actually looking forward to it. Cynthia carefully placed a perfectly cut piece of meat on top of Steven’s plate. 

  
  


“You should try the meat. It’s amazingly juicy.” As she took another bite of hers, waiting for Steven to do the same. 

  
  


As soon as the meat was in his mouth, he moaned pleasantly, savoring the taste. 

  
  


  
  


“Good, right?” Cynthia smiled brightly at him, cutting another piece, and stabbed it with a fork, leaning in to feed him another piece. Steven gulped at the gesture, Cynthia had never done this to him before, so of course he was nervous. Not wanting to keep Cynthia’s hand sore, he leaned in to take another bite of the delicious piece of meat. 

  
  


He hummed approvingly, clapping silently, “They might not be the best at spices, but the steak is amazingly well cooked.” 

  
  


Cynthia let out a laughter, “Maybe next time we can come back and order the steak instead.” 

  
  


Steven smiled, “Agreed. Now, for the plan.” 

  
  


Cynthia wiped her mouth gently, and smirked, “Should we start?” 

  
  


Steven smirked back at her, standing up and held out his hand, as she took the gentleman’s hand. They walked towards the kitchen pantry, and knocked on the door. Waiting the chef to open the door. 

  
  


After standing outside for a minute or so, the waiter’s head popped out at the door. Steven and Cynthia raised their eyebrows, in surprise. The person who answered was neither the chef or the waiter that served them earlier, but instead was a normal waiter. Who looked at them in confusion, before widening his eyes, as he recognized the two champions before him. 

  
  


“Hello, how may i be of help to you, sir and madam?” The waiter managed to blurt out in his trained professional voice. 

  
  


“Ah— no. We’re here to see if we can give our complementaries to the chef and waiter that served us earlier.” The restaurant itself doesn’t really have that many customers, yet. As it was still brand new, and it was their second week since they opened the restaurant. So, the workers there wasn’t that difficult to distinguish. However, since they started eating, they seen the mysteriously suspicious waiter that served them. This was getting incredibly suspicious, to Steven.

  
  


“Oh! Well, you’re in luck, sir! Our chef is actually on his break now. And the waiter that served you earlier is in the back with us. Would you like to give your compliments yourself?” The waiter politely asked them. 

  
  


“No, it’s quite alright. We just wanted to pass the compliment to them. Would it be rude to ask for their names?” Cynthia smiled sweetly, tilting her head at the even more flustered waiter. Steven had to hide his amusement by looking away. His girlfriend definitely likes to tease people— whether it’s with her words or her killer looks, even if she didn’t mean to. 

  
  


“Uh— yes, of course! Chef Siebold’s skills are off the charts you see! That’s probably why the owner, Wallace picked him as the chef for our restaurant—“ 

  
  


Steven widened his eyes abruptly, opening his mouth as if he’s trying to say something. But was then met with silence as he couldn’t find his words. Cynthia however, only raised a brow, smirking grimly, “I suppose your hunch was right, _love_ — ah, was the waiter that served us earlier, was actually the owner, Wallace?” 

  
  


The waiter nodded in confusion, “Yes. The owner stated that he just wants to work as a waiter for one day, to experience _the hardships of serving fancy customers._ ” He added quotation marks as he said the last sentence, as if just emphasized Wallace’s exact words to the workers. 

  
  


Steven let out a heavy sigh, and muttered, _“That guy...”_ making Cynthia laugh at him. 

  
  


“Well, you should’ve expected this to happen, _love_. It’s Wallace we’re talking about, after all.” Cynthia said as she quietly nodded politely to the waiter, dismissing him after the trouble they put the poor man through. The waiter probably wasn’t aware that he had accidentally leaked Wallace’s dirty secret. Cynthia honestly felt sorry for the workers that was hired here, she couldn’t even began to think what the poor workers would have to do to put up with Wallace’s weird antics. Cynthia let out a _“tsk”_ before catching a stray of familiar teal-blue hair peaking out of the corner of her eye. 

  
  


Cynthia smirked knowingly, shaking her head at her boyfriend’s best friend. He was a strange individual all right. 

  
  


Steven was currently trying to figure out, how could he had not noticed the weird chandelier, and the ridiculously huge fish-tank— there were _clamperls_ , and _frillishes_ in the tank for arceus’ sake. But, Steven couldn’t help but feel confused, as to why the Sootopolis gym leader didn’t tell him that he had bought the place and opened a brand new restaurant near his area. Steven was even more confused about the fact that his own best friend had played spy with the two of them.

  
  


Steven huffed as he said, “I guess you’re right. It’s Wallace. He’s always full of surprises, and i might need to talk to him about this tomorrow.” 

  
  


Unbeknownst to them, a certain water-type gym leader sneezed as he took off his fake wig and mustache, patting himself on the shoulder for a job well done. 

  
  



	20. The Scars

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 20! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so i'm sorry there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)
> 
> (this chapter is kinda long and different, is it angst? it's up to u, lol. i do hope all of u will enjoy reading it though. won't know if i can update tmrw, please bear with me;;;)

December is around the corner. That also meant that the annual end of the year pokemon league meeting is near. This time it was held in the Kalos region. The city of love— is what they were called— or the city of fashion and beauty, is what the people of Kalos usually calls themselves. 

  
  


  
  


The weather in the Kalos region wasn’t the exactly in Steven’s favor— as it was snowing in some areas, including the pokemon league area, much to Steven’s dismay. But, he could get used to it, after all, to him, Sinnoh’s climate was harsher than in Kalos. So he supposes he could stay here for a while, he just has to remind himself not to forget his gloves and extra socks when he’s going out. Although the meeting was still until another few days, he couldn’t help but decide to go sightseeing while he was there. 

  
  


This time too, he was accompanied with Cynthia. The both of them had started of the day with a cup of hot coffee, then proceeded to head out to go window-shopping, they also went to a gorgeous park that lets pokemon play with each other— and of course, they obliged, letting out their party pokemon to interact with each other, all the while taking pictures of themselves and their pokemon— then, by the end of the day, they went to have dinner near the place that they were staying in. His hands wrapped in Cynthia’s hands at all times when they went sightseeing. 

  
  


Speaking of Cynthia’s hands. Steven could feel his eyes lingering on her lithe fingers. As she took off her black fluffy scarf, and her gloves, he couldn’t help but notice the way how delicately she wraps her fingers around things. Even when she intertwines their hands together, he could feel the cold-tingling sensation mixed with soft, yet slightly calloused hands. Her fingers were long, her nails was usually painted with monotone colors, that made her hands look more elegant. 

  
  


But, of course, _nothing is perfect._ Or should we say, _nobody is perfect._

  
  


Steven furrowed his brows, whenever his mind wonders to Cynthia’s hands. He wasn’t bothered by it— _no._ On the contrary, he was curious. Worried, even. There were scars and scratches, there was even a speck of fainted bite marks left on her hands. Her forearms, there were few of those same bite marks, although it almost looked faint, it was still quite visible when a person squints. Cynthia herself had not tried to cover or hide the marks. Instead, she ignored them. Left them there as it is. Not being bothered by the slightest. 

  
  


Steven wondered why, but perhaps deep down, he knew the reason. 

  
  


Steven tried not to think or assume the scenarios of how Cynthia got those scars and marks. Instead, he _will_ wait. Wait until Cynthia decides to tell him about them. He promised to himself, that he will listen and appreciate whatever she’s going to tell him.

  
  


Until then, he always give her hands butterfly kisses. Loving ones. It always made the woman smile with loving eyes. For Steven, it was enough to make him content. Seeing the woman he loves happy and laughing all the time while spending time with him, makes him giddy. 

  
  


“Steven? Are you going to join me in bed or not?” Cynthia cooed from the bedroom, already placing herself in the comfiest position as possible. Clutching the heavy duvet to her neck, he decided to follow suit, before propping himself next to her. 

  
  


Cynthia yelped as Steven touched the nape of her neck with his cold hands. Flinching she pouted at him, “Your hands are freezing.” 

  
  


Steven chuckled as he leaned in to give her a chaste kiss. “I know. I thought you were fond of the cold.” Steven muttered in-between the kisses they shared. 

  
  


Cynthia smiled when their lips met again, sighing contently, as she pulled away slowly. “I didn’t say i was fond of them, it’s more like i’m used to it by now.” She retorted, the smile on her face slowly leaving her mouth. As the both of them fell silent for a bit. 

  
  


Cynthia eventually spoke up in the midst of the cold silence. “Steven. Can i tell you something—?” 

  
  


Steven raised a brow, as he sat up on the bed, adjusting Cynthia’s head onto his shoulders carefully. As Cynthia followed suit, he replied, “Of course, you can tell me anything.” Wondering why Cynthia suddenly fell nervous in front of him. 

  
  


“Okay— well, i kind of saw you eyeing my hands for a couple times now— and, i was wondering, if you were...i don’t know. _Bothered..._ by them—?” She muttered quietly as she looked down upon her closed hands that was now curled into balls of fists. 

  
  


Steven widened his eyes in shock, as he studied Cynthia’s empty gaze. Steven was far from bothered by them. No, he would never in his mind and soul be bothered by someone’s scars; especially to those he loves, he would protect them, he would love them. 

  
  


Steven furrowed his eyebrows, brushing her hair silently, as he replied, “ _No, of course not._ I’m sorry if i made you think that...i didn’t know that i was being inconsiderate... _truly_ , _i’m sorry,_ Cynthia—“

  
  


“—perhaps i should explain _why_ i’ve been staring—“ 

  
  


Steven could felt Cynthia shift against him, sitting up next to him, trying to hide her hands beneath the covers; seeing her like this made his stomach churn. 

  
  


Cynthia quietly looked up to him, her eyes not quite meeting his gaze. As if she was worried he would say something to hurt her. Steven took a deep breath before letting it out slowly, as he silently spoke to her, almost whispering to her ear in the process. 

  
  


“At first, i didn’t notice the scars you have. But then, the more closer we grew, the more i saw a glimpse of your scars. And no, i wasn’t bothered by them; not even the slightest bit, and even now, i’m still not bothered by them at all. On the contrary, i was _worried— worried,_ that something happened to you...i don’t know what i can do to protect you, other than supporting you and loving you. I wanted to ask, but, i was afraid that i would overstep your boundaries...I’m sorry, _my love._ For worrying you over—“ 

  
  


“Steven, love. Look at me.” Cynthia whispered, gently tugging Steven’s chin towards her. Their gaze were onto each other now. 

  
  


Cynthia pursed her lips before she talked, “Please, don’t apologize. I— i should’ve told you, about them. I’m sorry for making you worry. And thank you, for appreciating me and my decisions. You have never even in the slightest hurt me in any form or sort. But, before i do tell you— will you promise me, that you won’t leave?” 

  
  


“Of course. I will stay, for as long as you want me to. I would gladly listen to your worries, my love.” Steven gave her temple a kiss, before leaning his head onto hers. 

  
  


Cynthia slowly traced one of her scars on the center of her hand. Just below her knuckles. It was at least two and a half inches long, and was about two centimeters wide. It almost appeared seamless, yet noticeable at the same time. 

  
  


Cynthia proceeded to spoke in a gentle tone, “I first got this scar when i was 10. I was going on my journey to be a pokemon trainer, it was the first day i ever gotten out by myself, with my Gible. I remember that day well enough— when we tried to approach a pokemon for the first time, it was incredibly exciting— we had sneaked behind it, hoping that we could catch it by surprise—“ Cynthia trailed off, as he waited for her to continue, he kissed her head again. 

  
  


“—a man appeared. A _pokemon hunter_ , to be exact.” 

  
  


“Pokemon hunters? I thought those thugs were supposed to be illegal—“ Steven frowned. 

  
  


“ _And they were._ It was a crime, for sure. They didn’t have the right to capture those pokemon and abuse or sell them for their own benefit. As a trainer, i was furious. There were about 3 of those people. I knew i was outnumbered...i have thought of going back to my grandmother’s house and call her, but, before i could even react, Gible had threw herself into the scene and had gotten knocked out for protecting the pokemons in the forest—“ 

  
  


“—i was devastated. I knew i didn’t have the time to call someone or freeze up. So, i took it upon myself to jump in front of them. They didn’t listen to me, of course. Why would evil thugs like them listen to some trainer, much less, a small girl. And so, before i knew it. One of their pokemon attacked me, thankfully, it only grazed my hand. And by then, another trainer; an older one, came in and defeated them.” 

  
  


Cynthia’s lips slightly turned upwards, as she said, “Ever since then, i promised myself, that i would be more brave and strong. So that i can protect my pokemon and others. And maybe, even protect myself from danger.”

  
  


  
  


“—and _this_ , well, this one is an entirely different story.” As Cynthia showed him the scratches on the side of her thumb, about three inches long. 

  
  


Cynthia explained, “One day i successfully caught myself my second pokemon, Budew. I remembered how excited i was to have another friend, because then i could train both Gible and Budew at the same time.” Cynthia said, as her gaze turned into a distant one. 

  
  


“But then, a little girl came to me. The girl told me she admired how i caught Budew. Then, she requested a battle, so i obliged. The battle was going well in my end. But, not so well, on hers. Back then, perhaps, i was too naive, to think that it was just another normal friendly battle between two aspiring trainers.” She let out a sigh, and took a moment to collect herself before continuing. 

  
  


“But, of course, not all battles end in a fair way. Just when Budew was about to land the final blow. The girl commanded her Sandshrew to use slash. But not on Budew. But on me.” Cynthia felt Steven’s body shift, as he propped his head so that his chin rested on her head. Cynthia could feel the frown started to form onto Steven’s features again. As he absentmindedly, caressed her fingers; as if he was massaging them. 

  
  


“It hurt. Of course. But i didn’t cry. Nor did i blame the girl and her Sandshrew. The battle ended with her leaving us silently. I didn’t feel any sort of anger towards them. I didn’t know why. But, i did know that her Sandshrew was hurting. It had this sadness and guilt in its eyes when they left. As if it didn’t have any intention of doing so; then i thought, why did it obeyed its trainer then? Again, i was too innocent and naive back then. Later, i realized that, the reason why it obeyed, was because it will got hurt again, if it didn’t obey its trainer’s orders.” 

  
  


  
  


Cynthia let out a long breath, looking up at Steven beneath her lashes. “It’s sad, really. How some people are still treating pokemon like they’re a piece of dirt. When, all they want is love and affection...” Steven stated, furrowing his brows. Cynthia huffed, “ _Hm_ , people like them are simply the worse. It angers me that they still call themselves trainers, when all they do is abuse them and make them feel bad.” 

  
  


The cold room was filled with silence yet again. The Air conditioner was turned off, due to the cold winter seeping through the hotel windows. The heater and the thick covers were the only ones keeping them warm and cozy.

  
  


Steven’s eyes fell to Cynthia’s dainty fingers once again. This time tracing his fingers on the bite marks on the sides of her hands. Cynthia hummed as Steven does this, “You can ask, _you know._ I’m more than delighted to share another story, _if it’s with you._ ” 

  
  


Steven let out a breath that he didn’t notice he had been holding for quite some time. He obliged, asking her in a gentle whisper, “These bite marks— were they from a pokemon?” 

  
  


Cynthia nuzzled Steven’s neck as she glanced down then looked up at Steven, calmly replying, “ _Yes._ Actually, they were Garchomp’s.” 

  
  


Steven’s eyes widened for a second. Thinking of the Cynthia’s first partner pokemon. Steven didn’t get why Garchomp would do that. Considering the dragon-type was perhaps the most loyal and protective out of all her pokemon. 

  
  


Cynthia pressed her lips together, as she licked her lips, she said, “It wasn’t anything serious, _really._ Gabite had just evolved from Gible, and was going through, to what i think is— a teenage phase. She was apparently still teething when she evolved. It was partly my fault for not getting her a proper chew toy to help the process. So, she ended up biting my hand a couple times, before she finished growing the rest of her teeth.” 

  
  


Cynthia chuckled as she took a glance at her bag, containing her pokeballs. She had brought them along with her to Kalos. Of course she wouldn’t leave them back in Sinnoh. Cynthia wanted them to experience the thrills and different atmosphere here in Kalos. Cynthia had planned a day to spend time with them and even thought of pampering them in the spa and salons that were available in Kalos. Of course they deserved the treatment for all the hard work they had put in. 

  
  


“I remember the day she evolved into Garchomp very vividly. She looked so proud of herself for finally evolving. Her innocent and childish gaze had turned into a sharp and feisty one. And, I guess she must’ve felt bad for the bite marks she left back then. Of course, i didn’t mind it one bit. Before i knew it, Garchomp had became a somewhat of a protective guardian to me, she rarely wants to be babied anymore. It honestly saddens me a bit. But, i get why though. She had grew and evolved, not only her physical appearance— but her mind and soul as well.” Cynthia softly stated, letting out a breathy laugh in the process. 

  
  


Steven smiled at the story. It was heartwarming to hear Cynthia’s stories; especially if it’s about her pokemon. Steven had to be honest, her Garchomp wasn’t the type to hurt her trainer on purpose, of course. And Steven let out a sigh in relief as Cynthia finished her story. 

  
  


  
  


Then, suddenly, Steven leaned down and kissed her cheek, as he gently reached for her hands and kissed them, like he did all the time. Leaving butterfly kisses on the scars; appreciating them, showing them love. As a fond smile grew in both their faces. Cynthia stifled a chuckle underneath her breath, slightly ticklish of the kisses Steven left. 

  
  


“You did succeeded, you know. You became a powerful and ambitious trainer, that people and pokemon can rely on. You are so very brave, _my love._ Beautiful in every way, your scars here are there to prove that, Cynthia. The scars are here to signify your strength, how you fought for both people and pokemon’s rights. It resembles your uniqueness, you have always been different in dealing with problems, you learn from your problems and mistakes, you experienced them, and interpreted them with your own unique ways. And, you shouldn’t be afraid or ashamed of what other people think. Because in the end, you have an amazing independent woman, who is both strong and beautiful. That is also one of the reasons why _i love you..._ ” Steven said, his words sounded like music to her ears. 

  
  


Cynthia felt her smile grew wider, as she closed the distance between them. Her arms were still intertwined with Steven’s wide ones. As if their hands were made for each other; as if they were bound from birth. For the first time in her years of living, she felt safe. She felt loved. Appreciated. It made Cynthia glad that she had fallen in love with a kind and supportive man like Steven. He was everything to her; and she knew that she was everything to Steven. 

  
  


Cynthia finally felt the weight of guilt leaving her shoulders, after she came clean about her scars and imperfections. She wasn’t ashamed of them; not in the slightest. Although, yes. When she first noticed Steven’s stare she would feel uneasy and insecure, but after finding out that he was actually concerned and wanted to listen to her stories, she felt relieved. Knowing that her boyfriend was there for her, and embraced her scars made her even more happy. 

  
  


“Thank you, _my love._ For hearing my story and embracing them. I couldn’t express my happiness in words...” Cynthia whispered, smiling widely at him. 

  
  


“ _Then,_ perhaps. We can show them with actions—? They did say that, _actions speak louder than words—_ “ As Steven’s sentences were cut off by Cynthia’s lips pressing into his. 

  
  


  
  


The two shared a passionate warm kiss, beneath the covers, ignoring the cold weather, as their kisses and hugs were the only ones keeping them warm. 

  
  


  
  


And suddenly, the cold stopped bothering them. 

  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  


  
  



	21. The Snowfall

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 21! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)
> 
> Sorry for not updating these past few days, i had to prepare for the new term soon, so probably won't be updating regularly.   
> This is just a heads up, i have the other chapters ready to publish so, i'm good to go lol.

The snow had fallen from the sky, covering the grounds in the Kalos region. The cold winter air whispered through the atmosphere. As both the Hoenn and Sinnoh champion sat on the snow-covered bench on the corner of the park. A big tree hovered over them, giving them enough shelter and privacy. 

  
  


As Steven patted down the snow from the seats, Cynthia had let out her pokemon to go around the park and do whatever they want. Steven did the same, although his pokemon were quite difficult to control at times. But, he supposed that he could let them goof around for a day, silently hoping that they won’t start some sort of chaos or accidentally wrecking the park’s property. Now, wouldn’t that be a problem. 

  
  


The entire city was wrapped up in festive colors; green and red ribbons could be seen near very lamp posts, houses and shops decorated with wreaths and garlands, the big Christmas tree in the middle of the bustling park was surrounded by bright lights, pretty ornaments hung around the branches and leaves. 

  
  


Even though it’s still the end of November, the people of Kalos were already starting to greet the holiday season. Some were even seen wearing the traditional colors of Christmas. With the snow covering almost the entire city, he couldn’t help but think how the people in Kalos would celebrate the day Christmas came. 

  
  


Steven sighed contently as he gazed at the lights around them, they sort of looked like stars in the night sky; although it was still noon, though. It almost felt as if it was Christmas already.

  
  


“It’s quite a sight isn’t it?” Cynthia looked up, smiling as she gawked at the Christmas tree. 

  
  


Steven hummed, as he glanced at Cynthia. Suddenly his eyes were locked onto Cynthia’s face. She looked so serene like this. 

  
  


Steven’s smile grew into a sly one, as he puts an arm around her waist, she glanced confusedly at him. Steven leaned over until his lips hovered over Cynthia’s ear. 

  
  


Steven let out a breath, whispering, “It is a sight. But, i find it harder to look away from you.” 

  
  


His warm breath tickled Cynthia’s ear, as she could feel a shiver on her spine, and blush creeping over her cheeks. Choking on air, she let out a slight cough, face flustered. 

  
  


Cynthia took a sharp breath of the cold air, as she averted her eyes to take a moment to recollect herself. As she slowly regained her composure. She glanced coyly at Steven from the corner of her eye. 

  
  


“ _My_ , you have become quite the flatterer, _Mr. Stone_. I wonder if you have other more compliments up your sleeves...” Cynthia retorted. 

  
  


It was now Steven’s turn to be flustered, as he opened his mouth, stammering,

“Well, _you see—_ “ 

  
  


Cynthia rolled her eyes fondly at the Hoenn champion. “ _Oh_ , what’s this—? Wherever did the confident _Mr. Stone_ went?” Cynthia purred at him, teasing him. It was making him really flustered to say the least. Steven cleared his throat as he readjusted his collar, loosing it up a bit. 

  
  


As Cynthia let out a gleeful laugh at Steven’s expression. Steven shakes his head in defeat, “I guess you got me. Just when i thought i caught you there...” 

  
  


Cynthia giggled, leaning her head onto her boyfriend’s broad shoulders, she muttered, “I suppose you might have to try harder next time...” 

  
  


Cynthia’s smile widened as she felt his warm lips pressing onto her head. Giving a hum, he sighed as he took in the sight of the town again. “ _Hm_ , I think i will. Maybe next time you’ll be blushing like a _tamato berry_...”

  
  


Cynthia let out an amused chuckle, “We’ll see, _my love_. We _will_ see...” 

  
  


  
  


As the two champions snuggled together underneath the big tree. Their pokemon were currently having the time of their lives. Playing together in the snow, creating giant snowballs to throw around at each other, some were making snow angels, bathing in the cold white snow. And some of them decided not to partake in the fun, opting to sit down near the benches or crowd around each other, seeking for warmth. 

  
  


One of those pokemon happens to be a certain feisty dragon-type. 

  
  


Which was not fond of the cold weather at all. In Sinnoh, there were a few months where the temperature and weather wasn’t to Garchomp’s liking, but she never really had a problem with it. As she was always inside the Sinnoh league’s building at all times, when a challenger decided to come in. 

  
  


  
  


Except when there’s snow. Oh, how Garchomp _despised_ the snow. Especially when it hailed around Snowpoint city. Garchomp tried to avoid the city for the longest time, opting to stay inside her pokeball to save her skin. But, of course she would indulge sometimes, when Cynthia really needed her help with her research or on battles, she ignored the hail and snow with all her might. 

  
  


And of course, she succeeded in doing so. Garchomp was quite good at maintaining her composure in the cold weather, when all the grass and dragon-types were all shivering their skins off, Garchomp treated the snow like it an ordinary rainfall. 

But that didn’t meant she was particularly fond of it, still, even though her body was prepared and trained well enough for this type of weather, she couldn’t help but feel annoyed at the bits of white snow falling onto her snout and skin. 

  
  


The cold tinge of the snowfall was not the only one making her grunt in annoyance. Garchomp has been staring at her trainer cuddling up to her lover a little bit to close for her liking. 

  
  


Metagross on the other hand was pretty happy to see the couple reuniting again. As he sat next to Garchomp near the bushes, that covered most of their bodies from the snow, he felt some sort of relief after weeks of watching his trainer mope around in his office. It was an unbearable sight to see for sure. 

  
  


Metagross shifted his limbs, tucking them beneath his upper body, glancing at the glaring dragon-type worriedly. Garchomp had been in the same position since Cynthia let them out of their pokeballs. She took a seat on top a dry ground comfortably, teeth clenching as Metagross could hear her mumble something beneath her breath. 

  
  


_“I think you should stop doing that.”_ Metagross sighed, _“You look like you could let out a laser beam out of your eyes with that glare...”_

  
  


Garchomp snapped her head at Metagross, grunting, _“Your trainer. He’s being too close. Doesn’t he know anything about personal space—?”_

  
  


Metagross lets one of his limbs out of his sitting position and uses his upper limb to take a peek at their trainers from the bushes. Furrowing his non-existent eyebrows at the taller pokemon, he let out a monotoned cry, _“You do realize that’s a normal thing when humans are tied in a relationship, right?”_

  
  


Garchomp sneered at Metagross, letting out another grunt, averting her eyes from him as she kept quiet while keeping a cautious eye on her trainer. 

  
  


A good few minutes passed, it had turned quiet for a moment, until Garchomp could feel the intense stare upon her back. Just when she started to turn around and growl at her companion, Metagross let out a rumble, _“You look cold...”_ squinting her sharp eyes, she let out a grunt, _“Hmph. I’m fine. I’m used to the cold, remember?”_

  
  


_“I know. But, that doesn’t mean you’re unaffected by the weather,”_ Metagross gently poked Garchomp’s tail, making the dragon-type flinch, and went ahead and tucked it between her legs, furrowing her eyes annoyingly at the sudden contact. _“See, your tail. It’s shivering.”_

  
  


Garchomp huffed, leering at Metagross _“Tsk. Whether i’m cold or not isn’t any of your business, now is it? And please, for the love of Arceus. Don't you dare touch my tail.”_ Averting her eyes to her team members, they were all playing around in the snow, with the exception of Roserade— who was shivering like a leaf, standing at a nearby bench, holding her thick scarf tightly around her neck. 

  
  


Garchomp shook her head at the bouquet pokemon. She was clearly not fit for the weather, but she’s still trying to play with the others? _Unbelievable._

  
  


_“I know. At least you should’ve brought your scarf with you. Didn’t your master gave one to you?”_ Metagross says. 

  
  


_“She did. But, i chose not to wear it.”_

  
  


_“Why is that?”_ Metagross tilted his head up to look at Garchomp. The sun was starting to set, and before they knew it the temperature had gone up a couple degrees. Making the tall dragon clench her teeth to prevent herself from giving in to the temptation to go back to her pokeball and grab her scarf. No. She will not give in. No matter the cost. She will not give in to the temptations that Metagross was giving—

  
  


_“I simply do not like the feeling of those piece of cloth on my skin. It feels— itchy.”_ Garchomp says, rising her snout up in the air. An air of pride could be felt around the dragon-type. 

  
  


Metagross sighed, taking off his own scarf, that was large enough to make two people warm. He nudged Garchomp’s side and let out a low rumble, _“Here. You can have mine,”_ Garchomp opened one of her eyes to peek at the scarf that was handed to her, she frowned upon seeing the piece of cloth. Crossing her winged arms, she averted her eyes back to where their trainers were. _“I thought i told you. That I don’t like the fabric tickling my skin—“_

  
  


Metagross shifted, growing impatient of Garchomp’s attitude. He was used to her stubborn and feisty attitude that he knew what she actually felt on the inside. And right now, her pride was at her peak. It made the metal-type groan in pain. He lets his limbs hover above the air, as he tugged the scarf and wrapped in gently around the proud dragon-type’s neck. 

  
  


And once again. Metagross was right. Garchomp was freezing. He had expected her to flinch when he wrapped the cloth around her. Instead, she growled in embarrassment. Much to Metagross’ amusement. _“Don’t worry. Mine has a softer texture for rough skins.”_

  
  


Metagross let out a sound that sounded like a low chuckle. “What—?! Is something funny to you?” Garchomp snapped her head to him, barring her sharp teeth, absentmindedly clenching on the scarf. Making her companion chuckle, “No— it’s just, maybe you should set your pride aside sometimes. It might do you some good.” 

  
  


Garchomp closed her mouth, as she found herself speechless. Metagross let out a cry, as he tucked his limbs again, patting the spot next to him. _“You should relax, you know. It is our day off, after all. Plus, the weather is getting colder, you could use some heat.”_

  
  


Garchomp huffed, plopping down next to him, taking a look around the park. It was as crowded as ever. The cold didn’t seem to bother the people and pokemon who were there in the park. It did bother her though, a bit. _“Are you implying that you give off some kind of body heat? Because you don’t,”_ she snorted, poking at the side of his head, _“Look at you. You’re skin is made of metal—!”_

  
  


Metagross chuckled, not looking to be bothered by the slightest at Garchomp’s poking, _“I suppose, yes. But, it’s better than standing around while glaring beams at our trainers.”_

  
  


Garchomp sighed, slumping her shoulders, _“I suppose...fine. I’ll relax.”_ Metagross nodded at the sight of Garchomp’s posture slumping a bit, insinuating that she has accepted the idea of letting loose. Even if it’s just sitting down behind the bushes with her companion, watching the sunset and their surroundings. It was a bliss. To be able to experience relaxation at its best. After months of battling and training, they could finally have a day off and relax without any problems. 

  
  


At least, that’s what they told themselves. 

  
  


  
  


As if on cue, half of Steven’s team had started a snowball fight against Cynthia’s team. Screams and grunts could be heard everywhere. 

  
  


Both leaders from their respective parties sighed heavily. _“Ah, how lovely. Those troublemakers are making a scene.”_ Garchomp lets out a low growl. 

  
  


_“Well, it can’t be helped. Our team members rarely experience snowfall, after all.”_ Metagross deadpanned, staring from afar, as he winced quietly when poor innocent Cradily got hit by a large snowball when she was lounging with near a bench with Roserade. Metagross looked around to see the culprit, but got stuck watching Lucario and Armaldo accusing one another. Cradily launched a snowball of his own towards the both of them, making Metagross chuckle heartily. 

  
  


_“Should we stop them?”_ Garchomp says, tilting her head waiting for Metagross to answer. Metagross stared at his team members, they were having fun. When was the last time he had seem them like this? Probably years ago. With the presence of some new friends to bond and play with, all of them seemed to be having the time of their lives. Metagross had to thank his trainer for this much needed vacation. 

  
  


Metagross simply answers, _“No. Let’s not ruin their fun. The real question is, should we join them?_ ” He looked up at Garchomp, earning another look from the latter, _“Ugh. No, thank you. I’d rather not get my skin all wet. You can go if you want, i’ll stay here.”_

  
  


Metagross blinked, chuckling at the grumpy dragon, _“Alright. I guess we’re staying then.”_

  
  


_“But, we’re definitely going to make a huge snowball to crush them, right?”_ Garchomp smiled slyly at Metagross. 

  
  


_“Oh, most definitely.”_ Metagross smirked back, both laughing heartily. As they seem to forget about their trainers for a while. Gazing into the sun as it sets in front of them. 


	22. The Flirting Session

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 22! Please enjoy!
> 
> Hewwo, i'm back. I apologize for not updating this fic in the last few days, it's finally the end of summer break;;; kinda sad tbh, but i'll manage, i think. 
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes) 
> 
> I hope all of you r staying safe at home!

It was finally the day the champions come together and discuss the matters in hand. The end of the year meeting are always such a hassle. It was the last day of work before the champions are dismissed for the holidays.

  
  


So, of course the champions were anticipating for this day to come, although some were hoping that there wasn’t any meeting at all. But, it couldn’t be helped, the faith of their respective regions are on their hands, after all. 

  
  


And so, the meeting had started. With the champions taking their seats, hot drinks in hand, they began the meeting with a warm welcome from the champion of Kalos herself, Diantha. 

  
  


“All of you, welcome to Kalos! Thank you for taking your time to visit. I suspect that all of you had a wonderful time in your stay here, _yes?_ ” Diantha pressed her hands together, looking around the room at the all too familiar faces. How she misses them. 

  
  


Although their last encounter was surprisingly chaotic, she still feels empty when all of them went home on their separate ways. Diantha always felt like they were all like a family to her. A second family. She even calls them a bunch of serotonins that keeps her emotions intact. 

  
  


Seeing them or even just texting or calling them after a long day from her exhausting work as an actress always made her day better. It’s as simple as that. There’s always jokes and sarcasms that were thrown around when she’s with any one of them. 

  
  


And it seems those jokes were making an appearance right about—

  
  


_Now._

  
  


“ _Oh, yes._ I had a _terrific_ morning today. It was _so_ refreshing...” Lance mumbled, voice echoing through the room, despite his low husky voice. 

  
  


Rolling her eyes, Diantha squinted at the Dragon-master, smirking at his sarcasm, “What happened to you now, Lance? Do pray tell.” 

  
  


Leon snorted loudly, trying to stifle his laughter, “A Clawitzer popped out from the river near his hotel and sprayed him in the face with a water gun,” cackling loudly, “You guys should have seen the look on his face—! It was hilarious!” 

  
  


Lance straightened up from his slouched position and furrowed his brows, “How did you—?!” Leon simply shrugged, “We were staying at the same hotel, _mate._ ” Lance squinted his eyes, scratching his neck in embarrassment, “We are—?” Leon nodded firmly, “Plus, my room had a full view of the riverside. So, i saw _everything_.” He emphasized the sentence, chuckling mockingly at the flustered champion. 

  
  


“Wish i could’ve saw that.” Alder chirped in, chuckling in his seat. Earning a groan from Lance. 

  
  


Diantha sighed and turned to the other side of the room, gesturing at the young Alola champion. “How about you dear? Did you enjoy your stay here?” She asks in a softer tone. 

  
  


Moon nodded, smiling up at Diantha, “I sure did! Kalos is beautiful! And the food is amazing, it’s so different from Alola. But, the weather... It’s too cold for my liking...” she says, averting her eyes, chuckling underneath her breath. Truth to be told, Moon was wearing an incredible amount of layers to keep her warm. Alola tends to have a more tropical weather, after all. 

  
  


“ _Aww,_ but you look kinda cute though, mate. All bundled up like that.” Leon cooed at the youngest champion in the room, leaning in to ruffle her hair. 

  
  


Moon groaned and rolled her eyes in embarrassment. Diantha then put on a sly smile upon turning to Cynthia and Steven.

“How about you two? Did something interesting while you were here?” Cynthia snapped her eyes upwards from her tea to meet Diantha’s cunning gaze. She sighed quietly, before smiling sweetly, “ _Why yes_. We did actually...” Steven cleared his throat, adding, “We went to the park yesterday. It’s really surprising to see the Christmas decorations had already been put up.” 

  
  


Diantha smiled with pride, “ _Oh, yes!_ People in Kalos really enjoys the festive season. They just couldn’t wait for December to finally come, that’s also probably why they decided to put up the decorations this early.” She says as she finally sat down on her seat. Right in the center. “Right. Now then, should we start—?” 

  
  


Before the others could agree, the Unova champion shouted, _“Wait—!”_ Steven furrowed his brows in concern, “What is it Alder? Is something wrong?” Diantha squinted her eyes at the older man, preparing to stand up and walk towards Alder’s seat. “ _No_! No, everything is fine. _Well— not really._ But, the thing is—“ 

  
  


Leon tilted his head, “What is it, _mate?_ You want a bathroom break or something?” Alder sighed heavily, as he tore through his pants and shirt, searching for something. “Does it itch anywhere?” Lance spoke up. 

  
  


Alder grunts annoyingly, huffing as he didn’t seem to find what he was searching for. Holding his head and groaning, he finally says, _“The files.”_ Diantha raised a manicured brow and frowned in confusion, “ _The files—?_ What exactly are you saying?” 

  
  


Alder pursed his lips together before finally blurting out the truth. “It’s the file that contains Unova’s crime and activities documentation. " _Argh—_ i must’ve forgotten to bring it with me...” Diantha let out a sigh, as she shook her head, “Please tell me that you did bring it with you to Kalos...” Alder laughed nervously, scratching his head, “Yes. I did. I must’ve left in in my room,” as he suddenly stood up, creating a loud creaking noise from the chair, and quickly dashed out of the room, shouting, “Don’t worry! I’ll go get them as fast as i can! So, you guys can just go ahead and proceed—!” 

  
  


The room fell into a sudden silence. As Diantha sat down again, sighing, “ _Alright._ I suppose, we’ll be starting without Alder. Would anyone like to start—?” 

  
  


As the meeting finally began. Without Alder. They quickly fell into a serious discussion. Discussing about the wreck of a mess that Team Rocket made again, after years of disappearing. Then, the darkest day that happened in Galar. Till this day, the concept of Dynamaxing and Gigantamaxing were still foreign to the other champions. But, of course, Leon, being the champion himself, he gave them the information they needed. Cynthia in particular, was very invested in the stories and histories of Galar, and their myths. After all the pleasantries were over. It was time for the paperwork to be done. They had all agreed to divide the paperworks into groups. The documentation were handled by the Kanto, Johto, and Hoenn. While the papers that needed to be signed were handled by the rest. All was well when they started. Everything went by pretty smoothly and fast.

  
  


Until, the flirting began. At first the flirtation was seamless to everybody in the room. They had all been to focused on the stack of papers in front of them. They worked in silence, of course. With the occasional small talk here and there. 

  
  


Nobody knew for sure when it started. But, it was getting pretty obvious when they heard Cynthia’s bubbly laughter inside the less chatty room. Diantha was the first one to notice. Of course she was. The Actress was stamping the papers in a repeatedly fluid motion when she first noticed. She heard the rough yet gentle voice from her seat. 

  
  


_“Are your hands tired?”_ Diantha glanced up as she raised a brow at the two champions in front of her. Cynthia hummed, “ _Hm._ It’s nothing i can’t handle. But, thank you for your concern. Besides, i’m almost done.” as she continued to do her work, eyes not leaving the papers in her hands. Diantha smiled at the short exchange. Turning her head down towards her own papers. She had initially thought that the two were flirting, it appears Steven was just being a caring boyfriend. Diantha wasn’t prepared for the next thing they said though. “Yes, i know. But, at least let me massage your hand a little. They look sore.” 

  
  


As Diantha’s brows raised up again. Feeling intrigued by the two’s shenanigans. She observed the way the Stone-loving champion took one of Cynthia’s hands and massaged them under the table, earning a gentle smile from Cynthia. “Thank you, _Steven._ ” Diantha smirked and shook her head at the sweet gesture. What she wasn’t expecting though, was that the others had seemingly noticed the not-so-quiet exchange happening in front of their eyes. 

  
  


Lance cleared his throat a couple times, trying to break the couple’s attention. Which of course, the two didn’t pay mind to. As they continued their not so quiet conversation.

“What do you want to eat for dinner?” Steven asks, absentmindedly massaging her hand, while also, reading his documents. Moon perked up from her paper, suddenly intrigued by the voices, shifting quietly as she tried to listen to their slightly hushed voices. “I was thinking of getting some sushi. What do you think, _love?_ ” 

  
  


Upon hearing the nickname that Cynthia gave to Steven. Both Leon and Moon blushed in their place. Moon patted her chest lightly, as her throat accidentally choked on the cold air around the room, being very careful not to to intrude on their _'moment'_. Lance just sat there, mouth wide open; gaping unbelievably at the two, papers seemingly forgotten, the pen in his hand dropped onto the ceramic table. Creating a clattering noise. Red— being the quiet one of the group, just smirked at the exchange, eyes not leaving his work. Diantha, however, was more than thrilled to hear the words that Cynthia said. Unable to hide the widening smile on her face, she licked her lips and observed silently. 

“ _Hm_ , sounds perfect. We have some leftover wine back at the hotel...” Steven whispered silently, giving his girlfriend the coy gaze that only the both of them knew about. However, Diantha— being the perceptive person she is, caught the slight smirk that Steven gave to Cynthia. Making her snort in amusement, then, Lance must’ve caught her reaction, as he widened his eyes at Diantha, trying to get her attention. 

  
  


Diantha scrunched her face and lifted a brow, mouthing, _“What?”_ Lance gestured to the two with his head, _“What’s happening right now—?!”_ Diantha chuckled quietly, as she mouthed, _“Just observe for now...”_ Lance huffed in slight agreement. Even if he wanted to finish the paperwork as soon as possible, he wouldn’t deny that he was just as curious as everybody in the room. 

  
  


Intertwining his hands together, setting them up on the table, as he tried to lean in to get a better hearing at their hushed voices. 

  
  


As they heard Cynthia’s giggle, all of them froze in place as they couldn’t believe what noise they just heard. Of all the years they have known each other. None of them had ever— _ever_ , heard Cynthia giggle. The Sinnoh champion would usually chuckle, and laugh primly if she found something amusing. But never giggling. The rest of the champions were staring at the blonde as if she had grown a second pair of head-- like a Zweilous. 

  
  


Leon, who was sitting next to Lance, nudged him in the shoulders, earning a startled yelp, _“What—?_ ” Face a little bit baffled when he noticed the Galar champion’s now flustered face. _“Did— did you heard that...?!”_ Leon says, in a screaming hushed tone. Lance nodded, face full with regret. Oh, how he wishes he would forget all the things he saw and heard, _“You think they noticed...?” Leon asks._

  
  


Next to Leon, Moon chimed in, “I don’t think they have...at least they don’t look like they know.” Fiddling with her thick winter jacket, she stifled a sneeze, putting her hands to cover half of her face. Probably hiding either her red face from the conversation between the two champions or hiding her red nose. 

  
  


“I think i’m gonna be sick by the time i get home...” Moon muttered underneath her breath. Leon glanced at Moon with pity, as he went ahead and patted her on the head, “ _Naw_ , i’m sorry to hear that, _mate..._ ” 

  
  


“ _Shh—!!_ Quiet you two. They’re saying something...” Lance whispered, as both Leon and Moon closed their mouth, they were presented with yet another flirty gesture. 

  
  


“ _Ah—_ my stamp must’ve ran out...” Cynthia sighed in disappointment as she tried reaching for her purse to look for a spare. As she was reaching for her purse, Steven says, “You can have mine in the mean time. Don’t worry i brought several of them with me.” With an easy smile, Cynthia tilted her head slightly and leaned in to grab the stamp from his side of the table. The stamp was positioned near Steven’s left arm, she had to leaned in to grab it, as she does so, she crossed Steven’s vision, all the while _‘accidentally’_ brushing her fingers against his arm. 

  
  


Leaving the Hoenn champion blushing. Of course, all of them caught this undeniably flirty yet cute act. All sane people would know that the show that they were putting was far from an _'accident'_. It was very obvious that they were flirting in broad daylight. Might as well speak with normal volumes, all of them secretly thought. 

  
  


Diantha had to bite her lip so hard to prevent her from bursting out laughing. Leon and Moon was blushing from head to toe, _poor them._ Lance gritted his teeth, pinching his nose-bridge, and shook his head, while muttering, _“Arceus...please, just let me die...this is too embarrassing to watch..."_ over and over again. Red smirked at his fellow champions’ reactions, as he checked his work silently, he piled them to the finished stack and waited for the others to finish theirs. 

  
  


But, it looks like they were not going to finish soon, Red thinks. Sitting back at his chair, putting both of his hands behind his head, as he waited patiently for the others to finish their work. 

  
  


  
  


“Thank you again, _my love._ ” Cynthia smiled fondly at Steven. Showing the other champions the sweet-side of her genuine smile. Diantha’s heart melted at the smile. _“Oh, how i wish you would smile like that in front of us, dear Cynthia,”_ She thought, _“But, i suppose, that smile is only reserved for Steven.”_ chuckling quietly, as she resumed her work, tuning out any intriguing whispers and murmurs around her, before hearing a slight gruff voice from what she presumes to be Lance's, saying something like, "There it is! did all of you heard that--?!". Diantha picked up her pen and continued to do her work, all the while smiling to herself while she hummed a quiet tune. 

After the flirting scene was all over. They eventually finished all the work they needed to do for the year; excluding Alder, he still needs to finish his work before he’s dismissed for the holidays. 

_How unfortunate._

Cynthia and Steven left first, informing them that they had dinner plans for the evening. Leaving the others to discuss about the events that happened before their very eyes. Blushes and flustered faces were seen everywhere in the room. 

As the day ends with the sunset, they left the building together with quiet and steady paces.

  
  


  
  


  
  



	23. The Discussion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 23! Please enjoy!
> 
> (English isn't my first language, so i'm sorry if there are some grammatical / vocabulary mistakes)

The meeting has long ended. The guards in the halls left their posts, going home for the holidays. The snow was falling in a flurry in Kalos. Bits of fallen snow could be seen from the windows of the meeting room. As the champions began to discuss about the unbelievable scene that had happened before their very eyes. 

After both Cynthia and Steven left the room, they immediately crooned around each other and started to talk over each other in a frantic manner. 

  
  


“Did all of you saw _that—?!_ ” Leon shouted, hiding his face in embarrassment, groaning as he does so. 

  
  


“Of course we did. They were not being discreet at all.” Lance chuckled, shaking his head in retrospect. Diantha clapped her hands together, laughing heartily after hours of keeping herself altogether. Letting out her amusement gleefully, sighing as she regained her composure, still grinning ear to ear. 

  
  


“Although, i had to give it to them for being so bold in the first place, in front of us nonetheless.” She says, Lance groaned, “Ugh. Tell me about it. They were making it very hard for us to focus on our work.” 

Diantha nodded eagerly, “ _Hm._ I agree, it’s not like them to be this open and careless,” she says, sipping her last drip of tea, she puts it back gently onto the saucer. “ _Perhaps_ , they were making up for the time they were separated from each other. They were laying low for, who knows how long before they came out to the public.” 

Lance nods, agreeing with Diantha, “True. It’s a great thing they did, though. Made things a lot more interesting, don’t you think?” Diantha chuckled, smiling slyly at the thought of Cynthia and Steven’s shamelessly obvious flirting, “ _Oh_. It was interesting alright. _Honestly,_ can’t they try to be more subtle next time? My poor heart can’t simply handle the public displays of affection they both showed.” 

_"Preach sister--!"_ Leon clapped his hands, throwing his head back as he laughed amusingly. 

Leon snorted, “But, did you guys caught the look on Steven’s face when Cynthia went and grabbed his stamp earlier? Man, it was hilarious.” As the others laughed with him, Moon suddenly sneezed. Wiping her runny nose with a tissue. 

  
Lance scoffed, rolling his eyes in exasperation, "Oh, please. How can we possibly unsee that..." he let out a sharp breath before continuing, "Wish i could make a pokemon use _Hypnosis_ on me to forget that."

Diantha rolled her own eyes, "Don't be dramatic now, Lance. _True_ , it might be a little bit disturbing, thinking about what we saw earlier," she trailed off, giving him a half shrug, "But, you know they were just being affectionate, _right?_ " 

Leon chuckled, nudging the defeated looking Lance next to him, "Yeah, mate. It was actually kind of sweet, if i'm being honest." Lance huffed, replying, "I know. And even though their affections make my eyes hurt, i wouldn't deny that they made quite the exquisite couple, if i may say so myself."

"Very true." Diantha smirked.

Diantha then turned her head to look at Moon, frowning her brows slightly, she says “I’m sorry you had to see those public displays of affection, dear. You must be shocked, _yes?_ ” Smile turning into a gentle one. 

  
  


Moon sniffled her nose. Nose red as an apple, face almost white as the snowfall outside. Shivering, she tucked her hands underneath her thick jacket’s pockets. Tucking her head further into the scarf she was wearing, almost as if she was buried inside it like a bunny in a burrow. Moon muttered, “No. It’s okay,” she blowed her nose into a tissue aggressively, “They looked very happy. And honestly, i feel envious of them...” 

  
  


Diantha tilted her head, leaning in slightly towards the younger girl, patting a chair next to her. Signaling Moon to sit next to her. Moon hesitated for a bit, before finally sitting in the chair, but still putting a good amount of distance between them. Moon didn’t want the older woman to caught her cold. That would be awful. 

  
  


Diantha propped her hand underneath her chin. “Want to talk about it, _dear?_ ” “Hey, _mate._ You okay?” Leon whispered, looking worried. Moon muttered underneath her breath, after fiddling with her hands for a while, “Ah— well, you see— there’s this person...that i like. But, i can’t seem to get his attention...” 

Leon’s mouth turned into an _‘o’_ shape. He gasped as he finished processing her words, "Aww, our little one has a crush on somebody--!" Leon squealed into his hands. _“Oh. My. Arceus.”_ Lance shook his head, smiling like a proud father. He ruffled Moon’s head, making her previously pale face red, flustered. “Don’t you worry, we’ll try and help you in any way we can!” Leon chuckled, shouting out, “Yeah! Damn right we will—! Oh, why don’t we go and interrogate your special person for you Moon?” 

  
  


Red chuckled underneath his cap, shielding his amused face from view. 

  
  


Moon gasped, as she hid her flustered face beneath her hands, _“Please, don’t.”_

  
  


Diantha sighed in exasperation, swatting both Lance and Leon’s shoulder, shaking her head at the both of them. 

  
  


Both men winced at the sudden pain on their shoulders. “What did i do—?” Lanxe whined, pouting ever so slightly at Diantha’s sudden action. Rolling her eyes, Diantha huffed, “You two are being irrational, do you realize that you're embarrassing her?” Leon gave a small chuckle, “Yeah, sorry about that. But, it’s not that bad of an idea...right?” Lance gave a violent shake in the head, gesturing Leon to stop. Upon seeing Diantha’s deathly blank stare, Leon quickly shut his mouth, silencing himself. 

  
  


Diantha sighed, giving the younger woman a soft gentle smile, “It’s alright, _darling._ Let me teach you how to attract your special person, if that’s what you want, of course.” She says, gently cupping Moon’s warm cheek, as the Alola champion smiled in relief, she gasped, “Really? You would do that?” 

  
  


Diantha hummed, “ _Mm,_ i would love to show you the many ways to charm your special someone, it’s a lovely month to start too!” Moon smile widened at the kind words that Diantha said. She felt incredibly grateful at the words the older woman said. It felt really good when she blurted her true feelings to the other champions. 

"Plus, i'm going to bring Cynthia to go along the ride with us." Diantha added.

Hearing the last sentence, made Moon even more excited. Moon never made that many friends to begin with, she also never had the guts to share her secret to her friends back in Alola. Her time to hang out with her friends were cut off by her duties as a champion, as well. 

So, to hear all the encouragement and support from her fellow champions, she felt immensely glad, that they were the ones who found out about her crush— at least, that was what Moon called her secret attraction towards _‘him’_ — her gut felt like it was telling her that her attraction wasn’t just a small crush. It was something more. Something bigger. She loves _‘him’_. It has been 10 years since she knew him, after all. 

“We will support you from the sidelines, Moon! Don’t you worry—!” Lance pumped his fists, smiling widely at her. 

  
  


“You bet we will—! Oh, and just so you know, i will not hesitate to beat this guy up if he messes with your heart—“ at the last sentence, Diantha gave him a glare that sent chills down his spine, flinching, Leon says, “Metaphorically. _Of course..._ ” meekly continuing his sentence, “Heck, i will even be your bodyguard— wait, _Lance—!_ ” Lance shot a confused brow at the overly excited man next to him, “We can both be bodyguards—!” 

  
  


Diantha huffed as she smiled fondly at the men in front of her. “Can we, Diantha? _Please?!_ ” Leon pouted, giving the Kalos champion his best winning smile and puppy eyes. Diantha took a deep breath as she tried her hardest to ignore the puppy eyes the Galar champion was giving her. But, alas, she eventually gave in.

  
  


“ _Fine_. Do whatever you boys want,” As she heard the cheers came, she chuckled evilly, as she was about to ruin their triumph, she raised a hand, and calmly said, “But, on one condition. You both will have to wear costumes—“ 

  
  


“Even better—!!” Leon gasped, grabbing his stuff, walking to the exit, he says, “Welp. I better get going—! I still need to do my errands! But, i’m guessing we’ll be seeing each other soon?” 

  
  


Diantha nodded, as she too, stood up with the others, “Before Christmas Eve. We need to meet up a week before that,” Lance tilted his head, “What for?” Diantha laughed lightly, ushering all of them out of the room, as she locked the door behind her, she turned to them, saying,

“ _Why_ , to help Moon confess her feelings, of course.” 

_"We are--?!"_ Leon and Lance stared at the Kalos champion, shock written in both of their faces.

_"I am--?"_ Moon followed, pointing a finger to herself, "I thought you guys were just going to be there for my moral support--"

" _Oh_ , well. In a way, _yes._ " Diantha shrugged, smiling at Moon, "We are going to be both your moral support, and your matchmakers."

Lance slapped a hand to his forehead, "Please don't tell me you are going to put us in those silly spy costumes...because if we are, _i swear--_ "

Diantha sighed, slumping her shoulders, "Relax, _dear_. You won't, i'll make sure of that." patting Lance's shoulders in reassurance, "Oh, thank god." Diantha smiled slyly at Lance, "Instead, you will be wearing another costume that i have in mind..." Upon hearing that, Lance immediately groan in displeasure. 

"What--? Why not? I mean, i think they're _wicked._ " Leon chimed in cheerfully, making Lance groan again.

"I don't know why, but i have a hunch that this isn't going to go well--" Moon muttered underneath her breath, massaging her temples. Suddenly feeling dizzier than before. She really needs to lie down as soon as she got to her hotel, Moon thought to herself. 

As Moon blew her stuffy nose onto the napkin, she witnessed the already chaotic scene that her friends showed in front of her, squinting her eyes with much needed suspicion, she continued muttering, " _Oh, yeah._ This is not going to end well, at all."


	24. The Eeveelution

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! hope all of u will enjoy this chap!
> 
> i apologize for the long wait! ive been delaying this fic series for far too long. i have another one in my drafts, but not sure when it will be up, hope i can finish it soon tho. 
> 
> (English isn't my 1st language, so i apologize if there are some grammatical or vocabulary mistakes)

Glaceon decided that she is _annoyed_ at the man. 

  
  


The eeveelution contemplated on the word hate or dislike. But both seemed like too much of a strong word to describe the young man that had seemed to caught her trainer's eyes.

If she could talk to humans. The first thing she would want to say to this man is; "What an attention hog." But she knew she would not hear the end of it from the young lady in her mid-20s.   
  


In all her life living as one of Cynthia’s trusted pokemon and companion. Never had she been the one to make immediate conclusions about strangers she had just met. Glaceon was undoubtedly the most reasonable out of her trainer’s pokemon. Coldness and grace was a part of her nature, she supposes. Even the calm and motherly Togekiss has her limits— she once had a fit when one of Steven’s pokemon, Armaldo picked a fight with lucario, the fight ended up with both them getting blew up by an aura sphere; the trio ended up getting scolded by Garchomp later on. 

  
  


Glaceon just watched with an equally tired and uninterested eyes most of the time. She looked up at the skies, they were overcasted by a generous amount of shade from the big oak tree, a yawn escaped her mouth; a perfect weather for a nice nap indeed. 

  
  


_Crash._

  
  


Glaceon growled under her breath— _curses_ , she was really looking forward for a long-awaited cat nap. _Great_ , now she had to get up and leave her temporary favorite place to sleep. 

_"What is the matter with them?"_ Glaceon grumbled, they were supposed to relax from all those horribly long matches-- sometimes, short ones if Cynthia decided to pull out her ace at the start of the match-- and she remembered very well that all of them were begging for a break from pokemon battles. One second they were complaining, another second they were fighting with their new friends, she doesn't understand it.   
  


Another commotion could be heard from the back of the tree, the ice-type’s fur and tail puffed up like a feline when a loud thump shook some of the leaves from the tree. Glaceon was fed up; she did not want any dirt or scratch on her fur, for _arceus’_ sake she just had her bath yesterday. She got up, sauntered up towards the cherry wood steps of Steven’s beach house, and never looked back. 

But she could definitely feel the heat of the powerful fire blast from the land shark. 

She wondered why Cynthia taught her friend that move. But then her mind flashed back to the day where a trainer brought upon an all ice-type team. Sure Garchomp could handle a few ice moves here and there, but too much could possibly end in her demise. Lucario and Togekiss could handle them, but for some reason, her trainer likes the challenge. Thankfully, ever the wonderfully intelligent lady-- Cynthia managed to remove crunch and replaced it with a quite powerful fire move.   
  


Poffins for this lady please. 

In the end, all of their pokemon except for Glaceon, and the meek Roserade got scolded. _“...well, they got what they deserved for ruining my nap.”_ Glaceon whispered underneath her breath, sitting on the couch, tail wagging in a slight mocking manner; Roserade glanced at her teammate, letting out a sliver of breath she seemed to be holding. 

That whole accident was a few days ago. 

Glaceon was already trying to forget the whole ordeal. She was not one to hold long grudges. Nor does she want to; it stresses her out. 

  
  


But for some reason this, this human man can’t seem to get his hands off of her trainer. 

  
  


Long-lithe fingers ran through short silver hair, her eyes were closed; she was humming an old folk song she used to sing to Glaceon when she was nothing but a small young Eevee. 

  
  


How she loved listening to her trainer’s mezzo soprano voice. It helped her sleep peacefully without nightmares. 

  
  


Just like a Cresselia gifting beautiful dreams to both people and pokemon. 

  
  


The ice-type continued to stare. She noted on how the lady’s partner’s calloused hands never left her waist since she entered the room; caressing them as he listened to his love’s voice. 

  
  


Her long ears twitched the seventh time that day. Glaceon restrained herself from growling. 

  
  


It is simply undignified.

  
  


Not to mention, she didn’t want to interrupt the song. No. _"Restrain yourself"._

  
  


The Eeveelution will have to wait. Begrudgingly, she sat in a refined manner. 

  
  


And so, she waited until the woman finished her lovely lullaby. 

  
  


Glaceon didn’t even notice that she was closing her eyes; almost dozing off, until the song was over, and she heard soft whispers. 

  
  


She huffed, getting up on her hind legs she walked over to where Cynthia’s legs are, and pawed with the soft wool ruffles— Wooloo’s coat courtesy of the Galar region, there’s no mistaking it, and meowed. 

  
  


Yes. Meowed. 

  
  


“Hm..?” 

Cynthia tilted her head, hair falling into place, a fond smile still plastered across her face. 

  
  


Happy that she finally got her attention, Glaceon puts on her best puppy eyes. There is now way she could ignore her for this... _this_..man. Icy eyes glanced between her trainer and Steven repeatedly, until it settled on her trainer for good. 

  
  


The Sinnoh champion chuckled softly, taking her hands away from her lover’s silver locks, she instead made an inviting motion with her hands. 

  
  


“...come, little one.” Glaceon knew the woman was talking to her. 

  
  


The ice-type let out a happy chirp. Jumping onto the sofa with grace. She glanced at the man, then stared at Cynthia again. _“This man. Your lover or whatever. He is occupying my favorite resting place.”_ ice shaped eyes narrowing. 

  
  


As if listening to her pleas and worries. Cynthia raise an eyebrow, smile turning into a sly one. She tapped Steven’s shoulder, and said, “My love, i believe you should sit up now.” 

  
  


The Hoenn champion hummed, sitting up from his previous position, he looked down at Glaceon with a curious expression. 

  
  


“Now, come, little one.” Cynthia patted her lap. It ought to be sore by now. Glaceon thought. But she really wished to sleep on her trainer’s lap. It is after all, warm there. 

  
  


Sensing Glaceon’s hesitation, Cynthia let out a soft laughter, “It’s alright, come here.” To Glaceon it sounded like. _“You may sit or sleep here for as long as you like.”_ She smiled and pranced onto her trainer’s inviting lap. 

  
  


The last thing she remembered was, hearing Steven’s chuckle and continued by soft voice reverberating around the room. 

  
  


It was very warm. 

Like sleeping on a mother's loving lap. 

  
  



End file.
